The Happiest of Happy Birthdays...where all his birthday dreams came true

Every parent should have a Makay in their life. He makes things so much fun. He's just happy to be alive.  He is so excited and loving, you could give him the world he would be so grateful and enjoy every bit of it.  He partied hard all day. First of all, it was one of my favorite days because we were able to have all the festivities outside in the warm sun.  It's like he is the September baby I was wishing for.  He squealed with delight when he came into the kitchen this morning and saw his new pet fish. He has been begging me to take him to the store and buy a fish for months.  He also go the captain America set that he wanted, and his OWN legos so he doesn't have to share.  He took treats to school to share with his class and came home with a balloon and a crown.  After school we grabbed a bunch of cousins and had a picnic at Neptune park enjoying the last day of warm before the winter storms start coming in.  He was so sweet always making sure everybody else was happy and having a good time too.  After the lunch party, we came home and hurried and set up for his Batman party. He loves batman and he loved all of the little details that I threw together for the day.  

Robin and Batman were frozen by Mr Freeze, and we had to rescue them 

with a super soaker filled with fire hot H20

 Eating Cereal with his new fish Batfish.  

 They were trying to pet him, and we had to change the water because 

Batfish was looking sluggish after the big party. 

Right before Makay went to bed, he found this kleenex box that was covered with gold fish. 

He put it by Batfish's tank so he could have some friends while we were sleeping. 

 Man I love this kid. It's so weird how days like this flood my mind with memories.  I was laying with him at bed and all of a sudden I was taken back to the hospital room at Alta View when the nurse put him down on my chest and I loved him instantly. I was so anxious to have another baby, when the Dr said it was time to push I freaked out...I wasn't ready to start over.  But it was all put to rest when I saw him. I remember thinking how beautiful and huge he looked. I couldn't believe how big he was after I was used to his skinny bigger brother. That's what you get when you combine a Mendenhall and a Berry.  His thick baby thighs were so cute I could have squeezed them all day. He rarely forgets to tell me he loves me, and when he does, he remembers and apologizes for forgetting.  The other day I got really mad at him because he threw his socks in my eye when I was trying to help him. A couple of days later....he was laughing and said, "Mom, remember when I threw my socks at you and you got SOOO mad." giggle giggle.  Love you buddy!!!

Happy Birthday Nora

Today was similar to November 4, 2010.  I sat out on the porch in the warm sun and couldn't help but remember this day 2 years ago.  Nora  It was a warm Thursday morning when we checked into the hospital and I remember being glad that she was coming on such a beautiful day. My nurse was named Cody and she made the day so fun. We spent the time chatting about all the crazy moms that must come through these doors, all the while assuming that I didn't fall into that category.  Hopefully my assumption was correct, but you never know.   The whole experience was beautiful and painless. I remember the worst part of the whole day was that I didn't have enough pillows to support my heavy awkward body.   Nora came and I just held her while the nurses desserted me for an somebody with spiking blood pressure next door. One came to check on me about an hour later and I asked her if I should be feeding her. She laughed, since I already had 2 kids, they assumed I knew what to do with a newborn. I remember Nora eating FOREVER, it seemed like about an hour when they finally came and sent us to our other room.   We had tons of family come visit us and it was good to see everybody.  Grandma Jensen was even in town so she got to hold her in the hospital.  I also remember eating a ton of food. It was so nice to finally be able to eat after 39 weeks of nausea.

Every year I make my kids birthday cakes. Even the Rassavongs have been making requests for their birthdays. I usually do chocolate with chocolate filling and chocolate fudge frosting. But this birthday I thought I'd branch out and try something new,  Rainbow cake with Swiss Lemon Merengue Buttercream frosting.  It was a workout, but I love a good baking project so I figured since it took 3 days, I'd double up and make a Nora/Makay cake.  Makay was also so excited, his birthday is on Wednesday so this is a little teaser party for him.  I think he loves it because it makes his birthday drag out for several days.

We took the kids swimming for Nora's birthday. Anthony got baptized yesterday and after he came out of the water Nora said, "Mommy, I go swimming?" I thought it was a great idea so we went swimming last night.  Today is a Sunday so we had to get up and get ready for church, and Nora was so grumpy when she woke up. The boys were trying to make her open her presents and all she wanted was her chocolate milk and to be left alone.  They forced her through a couple, and then it clicked. She realized it was her special day. She was so excited and grabbed the other gifts and carried them over to the rug so she could really dig in.  She was even singing the birthday song that I have been singing all day.  We had dinner with family and followed up with cake and a dance party since Nora LOVES dancing.  All the cousins rocked out in the basement. And I danced too, but the boys get so embarrassed. So I sat down.  I'll save my dancing for Nora and I in the kitchen. It is one of her favorite things to do.  And we like the music loud so it's fun when it's just the two of us because nobody can complain about the volume or be embarrassed to see their mom dancing.  Happy Birthday Nora!!! We love you so much. You bring us all together with your funny personality, your sweet kisses, and your cute words. Our family has changed for the better since you have been in our home.

Milo the Llama

We were at Thanksgiving point the other day and Josh found this Llama just hanging around in the llama pen, and couldn't help but notice the resemblance between his and Milo's current haircut.  Milo didn't think it was as funny as we did, but here it is for posterity's sake.  We love you Milo.

Halloween

This is Halloween. Milo refused to wear a theme costume that matched the family, and he wanted to be something scary. So a here is my orange haired punk zombie.  Makay wanted to be Batman, not knowing we had this amazing costume in our storage.  His eyes glowed with delight when we brought it out of hiding. Nora is a butterfly I figured she is still a little young for anything too complex, so we stuck with the simple butterfly for this year.
I pre-made all of the dinner and breakfast the night before, so I wouldn't be stuck in the kitchen all day cooking and cleaning.  Orange whole-wheat pancakes for breakfast, and an appetizer sampler for dinner. The kids loved the Halloween cutout cheese for their crackers. Milo told me that they were "cute." I am glad they appreciate the effort. I drove all the way to Sandy to get those mini cookie cutters.  We went to the parade at Milo's school, trick or treated at Property Solutions and finished up the night around the neighborhood. Our boys made it through more than half the ward, while Nora and I came back for a diaper change and quick bath. She fell asleep in the stroller, and when I was laying her in her bed she woke up, looked around and screamed "OUTSIDE!" apparently she wasn't ready to come in.
Do you love our orange kitchen table? I know it is quite the eye sore, but it was $125 at Kmart when we first got married, and our kids still stab forks in it and color on it, so it's got to be part of our decor for just a little longer. I am hoping that next year we can overhaul our upstairs and make it more stylish. Right now it's just a hodge podge of hand me downs, overwhelmed with an outdated paint color, and splashed with olive green corduroy couches topped with the most hideous but comfortable throw pillows you could imagine.  And maybe next year Milo will let us cut his hair so he doesn't look like his llama friend anymore.