Ben's New Pants...

Christmas Greetings

When I was a kid we often made videos of our Christmas celebrations to send to our grandparents in Samoa.  Well, we did the same last night to send to our family in Denver, Virginia, Florida, Pittsburgh, and everywhere else.  With LOVE!  Enjoy.  It is right up there with Pinecones and Hollyberries, for those who have had the privilege of seeing that amazing vocal number by Trish and Rachel.

Randall Family Talent Show

I realized my youtube account was eligible for videos longer than 15 minutes, so here is the epic Randall Family Talent Show from the reunion in October.  LOVE LOVE LOVE it!

Ben on the MOVE

Ben actually got to the presents yesterday.  He chewed on only one package before I grabbed him.  He army crawled all the way from the family room to the presents.  Luckily there are only a couple more days or I would have to move all the presents.

He also got himself into trouble crawling under the saucer.  He got stuck. 

Holiday Traditions

There are certain holiday traditions in the Randall family that are very important.  Making gingerbread (graham cracker) houses is one of them.  This year I just figured I would let that one go though, because I have been so busy and we didn't have an FHE time when we would be home for it.  But on Monday afternoon, Libby asked if we could make gingerbread houses as a surprise for daddy.  I was just cleaning up from a cooking project, so I jumped at the chance to make another mess, and we went for it.  It was mostly me making my house and Libby's, but Sarah dictated where I should put the "glue" and then she added the candy.  They both ate about a gallon of candy and we had a blast.  When Derek came home we shut off the lights and then flipped them on and  yelled "surprise!!!" over the houses.  SO fun!  I am loving having kids that are a bit older.  (We also watched a Randall Christmas classic that I just bought on VHS--The Night They Saved Christmas!  It was a bit distracting for the girls.  How could I expect them to focus on houses when such a masterpiece of acting and script writing was on the TV?)

Incomplete weekend and -isms

A weekend just isn't a weekend with a blog post.  So, it is Thursday but I still feel like it must be last Sunday since I never posted.  It looks like life as a YW president might be a bit more complicated than I originally thought.  But maybe it just seems super intense right now because I have Christmas shopping, wrapping, baking, etc. on my plate.  Oh yeah, and sick kids.  Actually we have had a few barf-free days.  Amazing.  But Sarah was up early this morning saying her tummy hurt, so who knows what we are going to go through today.

Anyway, we have had a fun week.  Lots of parties and events.
Sarah told me the other day, "I am not a child anymore!"  I said, "Then what are you?"
"A silly adult."  Clearly.

Libby told me last night that when she grows up and has children, she is going to let them say "shut up."  I think I might have said the same thing when I was a kid.  But it sounds so yucky coming out of the mouth of a child.  I told her she will probably change her mind.

Rachel and Brad sent the girls videos from Santa.  They were so enthralled.  Santa speaks to them and they started talking back to him.  I had to leave the room to change Ben's diaper during Libby's video.  She started hollering to me--"Mommy, I AM ON THE NICE LIST!!  HOORAY!"

Libby also showed me yesterday how she can help Ben sit up (by grabbing his hands and pulling him up) and help him move by grabbing his hands or feet and dragging him around.

I have also been unhappy with another of Libby's new tactics to clean.  Shove everything under the living room couch.  I clean out from under the couch at least once a day now.  So irritating.  Almost as irritating as the way she is ignoring my potty etiquette sign in the bathroom.  Instead of wiping, flushing, shutting, and hand sanitizing, she simply leaves the bathroom, shutting the door (light still on).  So, every time I walk by the bathroom and the door is closed and the light on, I have to haul her in, have her go through the flush, shut, wipe ritual.  Sometimes it seems like diapers were easier.

Santa Ben

Hooray that he has figured out how to sleep on his stomach.  For about a week (or maybe a bit less) I would put him down to sleep, he would roll over and start freaking out because he couldn't go to sleep or roll back.  Whew for getting over that hump.  He is now eating two solid meals a day.  (Small amounts, but he is getting there).  He has been eating his last bottle at night right when I have given up and am planning on going to sleep.  I get in bed, close my eyes and he starts to cry (lately usually around 11pm).  I sigh, get up, and feed him 8 oz or so and he sleeps through the night.  That works.  

Dance Recital!!!

I have to start this post with a very sad announcement.  I forgot to turn on the video camera for Libby's performance.  I am devastated.  Luckily there will be a DVD I can buy.  But, here is Sarah.  She looks pretty deadpan.  I don't think she sings much.  But it is fun.  And, no crying.  Whew.

Sarahism

Yesterday I said, "Sarah, get in  your car seat."
"I can't," she said, "Kermit is in there. I don't want to sit on  him!"
She has imaginary friends all over the place!
After I "moved" Kermit then she said that Scooter and Gonzo were sitting next to her.  They have been watching the Muppets take Manhattan, can you tell?

My Little Cheerleaders

We finally made it to a Shorewood match!  And, it was a great match.  Shorewood beat Mariner for the first time ever!  The girls looked SO cute!  My visiting teacher Lisa actually made the outfits for me this time.  I just didn't have enough time to do a good job.  They are perfect outfits.  

The cheerleaders invited Libby and Sarah to cheer with them.  Libby only lasted a few minutes.  Sarah stayed with them the whole match, including helping them clean up their mat :)

This is probably one of my favorite pictures of Sarah ever!

BODYPUMP AIM

I took an amazing training on Friday.  It was crazy difficult to spend a whole day away from my 3 kids--and it went an hour and a half longer than I thought it would, but it was well worth the challenges.  The AIM stands for Advanced Instructor Module.  It challenged me physically and it challenged me to think about  my teaching. Can I just say I love my teaching job?  LES MILLS is a great company to work for.  The trainer was Susan Renata whose teaching I have been admiring for years on our training DVDs.  It is always fun to meet one of your heroes!

Ben on the MOVE!

Last year I decided to get a big Christmas tree instead of a little one sitting up on blocks.  I decided the girls were old enough to handle not touching the tree.  They were great.  I think they started unwrapping one present, but over all the tree was safe.  BUT...what was I thinking?  We had another baby on the way.  Maybe I was thinking that he would only be around 6 months old and wouldn't be crawling yet.  Boy was I wrong.  It isn't traditional crawling, but it is definitely an attempt to get around and get at things--like the Christmas tree.  My oh my.

Apple Cup

Thanks to Maren and Clark for letting me use the extra ticket, and Geneva and Brion for babysitting, I got to go to the APPLE Cup last night.  It was amazing!  I had always thought I didn't like watching live football.  Turns out I just didn't like watching it at Husky Stadium where it was crowded and just not a good atmosphere for watching.  Last nights' game was at Century Link Field (aka the "Clink").  It was the coolest!  I could actually pay attention to the game and follow the action.  I could hear what was going on.  It was seriously awesome.  I would go to every game at the Clink.  Oh yeah, except that I don't have time or money or enough babysitting.  But it was a fun night.  Especially because the Huskies won!!!  Derek had a picture of us together on his phone.  I will try to get it and add it.

The view from the "Clink"

PS.  A little trick for removing temporary tatoos, apply scotch tape and rip off.  Worked great for me.  (Although it hurt a bit).  NOT A GOOD TIP FOR LIBBY.  Her cheek is all red and hurty.  Boo.

Thanksgiving Fun

Aunt Maren and Uncle Clark hosted a "wonderful Thanksgiving" as Libby said in her evening prayers.  We had a good time.  The absolute highlight was Clark's turkey.  He cooked it on the Green Egg and it was smoky, moist deliciousness.  We especially appreciate the sacrifice he makes to cook it because he doesn't really like poultry.  Yum.  I made 5 pies.  Why do I get so carried away?  I even cooked a pumpkin for one of the pumpkin pies.  The texture was different than a canned Libby's pumpkin pie, but the taste was super yummy.  I also made delicious sweet potatoes from a recipe from Auntie Jen's mom.  Definitely my new favorite Thanksgiving side.
Then on Friday I shopped Black Friday with Maren, Paige, Emma, and Geneva.  I came home and got the decorating done.  I got all my Christmas lights up in front and then realized that one strand of lights was broken.  I had to unwind the entire mess and start over.  I was reminded why I have never done outside lighting before.  But the rest looks great!  I love Christmas decor.

I'm Thankful

There are many reasons why I am thankful.  I am thankful that I had the stomach bug on Monday and Tuesday and now I only have a cold.  I can eat Thanksgiving dinner with a cold.  Nothing worse than eating saltines on Thanksgiving.  I am also VERY thankful that I listened to my mommy instinct that suggested I take Ben to the doctor yesterday.  He has had a cough for basically a month.  But in the last couple of days I felt it had taken a turn for the worse.  He didn't have a fever, so I kept thinking they would just send me home and tell me to give him warm baths.  But, my doctor squeezed us in (I am thankful for her!) and he does have bronchialitis.  Wheezy lungs.  And the beginnings of an ear infection in one ear (NOT AGAIN!).  But we got the albuterol for the nebulizer to open the lungs, the azirthromyacin for the ear, and the fluconozole for the diaper rash that will probably come from the antibiotic.  We are all set for this holiday.

Sarah's Stats

Sarah had her well-child check last week.  She was great, except when Dr. Sutton-Wolf wanted to look in her ears.  For some reason she isn't into that anymore.  Anyway, here are her stats:
Weight:  34 lbs.  75%
Height:  38 1/2"   80%
BMI:  16.1  55%
Perfect!  And, FYI, Libby insisted on having her weight and height checked as well.
Libby's Weight:  31 1/2 lbs.
Libby's Height:  Exactly the same as Sarah's--38 1/2"
But, since Libby is 14 1/2 months older, I am sure that the percentages are a little different.  Oh well.  Libby has actually been eating pretty well lately.  I can't complain too much.

3 going on 6 months apparently

Big Changes...

I got a new calling.  Young Women's President.  I have been an ineffective Ward Missionary for 2 years.  I will now make up for doing very little for such a long time by doing a lot.  But, it is going to be an interesting challenge because we only have 2 active young women.

Check it out...

So if you usually read my blog through your reader, just a heads up.  There are a few cool things you might want to see if you actually look at the blog.  I redid our collage header with new updated pics that help you see why the whole zone defense thing can be tricky.  I also added a "Words of Wisdom" section where I hope to be adding favorite quotes that are helping me get through this parenting thing.  (Quotes from grown ups, not kids.)  Plus, I can now easily see how many times a post is viewed.  But, when you only look at it from your reader, I don't know you viewed.  Just wondering how many of you are reading :)

Ben Ben and More Ben

Some of these pics are from our vacation in October, I finally downloaded Rachel and Brad's awesome pics.  But the last pictures are the milestone that inspired this post.  He ate solids this week. I bought him a new high chair that I LOVE.  I only paid about $30 for the one I used for Libby and Sarah and I hated it the whole time.  Turns out when you pay a bit more you get a way cooler high chair!  He ate and swallowed at least 5 to 7 bites.  But, still didn't manage to sleep through the night.  (Actually, he did on Monday night this week, so I guess I can't be too upset.)  He is growing like a weed.

Wearing Brad's glasses

Showing his Stanford Pride...but they got trashed yesterday.  It was really a yucky game.  

Yummy solids!

Sarahisms

Sarah is so adorable and hilarious right now.  I took her shopping with me the other morning during dance class, looking for my shirt to wear in our family picture.  (BTW, I made a resolution not to buy any clothes between mid-Sept and mid-January, but Christmas family picture clothing is an exception to the rule!)  Anyway, I was trying on shirts over a Mod Bod undershirt out on the sales floor because we were in a hurry.  Every shirt I put on Sarah loudly and emphatically declared, "Mommy,  that shirt makes you look SO UGLY!" After about 3 shirts of this I finally gave up and went back later on my own.  I did buy one of the ones she called ugly, so when we get the pictures, you will have to decide for yourself if she was being honest, or just being 3.
On Friday night Derek was supervising Sarah saying her prayers.  I was laying on the floor of their room sort of zoning out.  All of a sudden her little voice caught my attention when I heard her praying for Heavenly Father to bless all her dogs and cats.  I couldn't help it.  It caught me so off guard I burst out laughing.  I don't think Heavenly Father will ever have to worry about blessing our dogs and cats since we won't ever have any.  But it was so cute.
I had just crawled back in bed this morning after feeding Ben at 5:30 (why always so close to when my alarm is going to go off anyway?) when Sarah came in.  She went right to Derek's side of the bed (he is actually off today) and said, "Daddy, I barfed.  I need you to clean up my bed and get me a bowl."  It was so sweet of her to choose him.  I didn't dare take away that privilege.  Although then she climbed in bed with me and got barf on our sheets.  Being a mom is awesome.     

Celebrating Sarah and Clark

We had a joint b-day party for Clark and Sarah this year.  Yummy lasagna and sundaes.  What could be more fun?  The birthday "kids" were very excited!

Halloween

I love Halloween!  I got my costume idea from a bodystep song that has a wonderwoman arm combo.  Then, I found Ben's costume and Derek's costume and we became the "super family".  It was lots of fun.  The girls really enjoyed trick or treating this year, and except for when Sarah stepped in dog poop and wiped her feet all over Auntie Maren's chair, I enjoyed the evening too.   

My Bodystep team from an event last year.  Great and dedicated members!

Super family!

Bodystep Halloween party.  I brought costumes for them to wear.  It isn't easy to do step wearing costumes!

We always trick or treat at Grammy's work.  So fun!

Sarahism

Yesterday morning Derek found Sarah on the floor of her room doing some strange leg movements.  When he asked her what she was doing she said she was, "showing her little Zumba friends how to do a move."
(This took place just after she had been watching me practice Zumba and yelling at me, "Stop dancing mommy!")

Reverently, Quietly...sort of

Yesterday in church a woman played a piano solo that was a medley of hymns and primary songs.  Derek pointed out to Libby that she knew some of the songs.  When she recognized "Reverently, Quietly," she burst into song along with the piano.  After she finished singing, and she realized no one else was singing she asked, "Dad, is this just a listening song?"

Pics of Ben

Right now Ben is driving me crazy because he is waking up to eat in the night more than he did as a newborn and then not wanting to eat during the day.  Grrr.  But I am determined to get him back on schedule this week by not feeding him in the night.  We will see how it goes.  He can now sit up a little on his own.  He can also go down for a nap and to bed at night on his own.  I just swaddle him up tightly so he can't pull out his binkie and he goes out.  He is absolutely adorable!

Sarah holding Ben, she gets a little nervous about it.

Ben holding his feet--one of his favorite things to do.  He LOVES having his diaper off because then he can even suck on his toes.  Yum!

Ben with Uncle Davey.  He enjoyed having his aunts and uncles around to play with him!