BREEZY FIELDS

(It was Monday when I started this, I've decided it will have to be written in installments). I can say that because I don't think I've blogged but 3 times the entire month. So whilst I sit in the parking lot of the photo studio looking so unready for a picture myself and my husband is inside getting his DA photo taken and Ellyn and Sawyer are watching Robin Hood and Jane and Sadie are pretend fighting that I am sure will soon turn to real fighting in the back I will attempt to catch up. It is 10:30 Monday morning. We pulled into our driveway at 11:30 last night after one whirlwind of a fabulous holiday week in Washington. I don't know if we've ever partied harder. I kid you not. Game nights until two in the morning, sledding, fondue feasting, chocolate dipping, remote helicopter flying, baby kissing, niece and nephew tickling, haircutting, hot tubbing, delicious food devouring, toy opening, toy loosing, toy finding, sibling teasing and conversing, Christmas sh...

Sadie- My favorite memory is being with dad and Sawyer and Sophia. Dad because he takes us to the pool and he takes us to Paris. Sophia because she played with me and gave me a playful recess. Sawyer because he is so funny and he makes me laugh and he makes me have a joyful home. Jane because she plays games with me, Ellyn because I like tickling with her. Mom because she loves me and plays with me. Mike- My favorite memory of the entire year was seeing Sawyer for the first time when I came home on R&R leave and realizing we had a son and not just punk daughters. Brooke- My favorite memory was standing back and watching my children greet their dad when he finally came home. They were so thrilled. Sawyer recognized him right away, Ellyn wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. She rode on his shoulders out to the car and all along the way she would lean over and look at the side of his face with a huge smile on her face. Then she would straighten back up and pat ...

Reuniting My favorite memory of '08 is the reunification of our family. November 26th was the best night in the world. Dad had been in Germany for 1 year and three months. Tonight he was coming home. We were working our butts off that day, cleaning. He was coming in at 6:55p.m. I can't even begin to describe how excited I was. Finally it was time to get dressed. We all got dressed in cute outfits for the occasion and got in the car. On our way there, there was tons of of traffic, very annoying. Once it was about 13 minutes till we got to the airport we were really stressed and it was already seven O' clock. Mom's exact words when I asked if she was OK were, "The last thing I would want right now is for your dad to come out of customs and us not be there." When we got to the parking garage there was a spot right in front of us. We parked and jumped out the car, got the kids loaded into the stroller and ran for the waiting area, looked at the flight board and ...

Sadie has had some tough choices to make lately. Today she came home from school hungry and announced to her father that she was "absolutely starving" and she needed either bacon or ice cream. That's my girl. But the choices have been even tougher. This afternoon (I was at a PT appt. with Ellyn and Sawyer. Mike was taking a practice GRE) Mike told Sadie that she could either help Jane straighten the kitchen or he could break her elbow (he really wouldn't break her elbow, just like I won't rip her arms off and beat her with them although I say it several times a week- Yes, it occurs to me we should probably tone down our threats). She couldn't decide which she would prefer, that is a child that hates a chore. My favorite has to be Sunday. Mike helped Sadie take off her Sunday shoes and then teasingly dropped it on her head, not thinking about that hard heel on girls Sunday shoes. Sadie was in tears. Mike was teasing her to get her to stop and telling he...

For Adult Eyes Only Okay, I have been trying to be good all morning, unpacking suitcases, making important phone calls, making lists of things I need to do, but the blog has been calling me and I can resist no longer. I loved reading all of your blogs. Rigby girls, I'm sorry to hear about Tuco- for your parents' sake. Give them a big hug for me. Jess, I'm totally jealous that you have finished the BOM. I am a bit behind and mom and Jane figured out that I have to read 8 pages a day from now to the end of the month to finish. I think Mindi's prediction is going to come true for me. Everyone will be celebrating the new year as I read the last chapter of Moroni. I am going to do it though. You can count on that. So Cory and my girls and I just got back from Bend Oregon last night. Cory had to work and I didn't want Jane missing too much school. So mom has volunteered to be in charge of coordinating the food for Pop's funeral and they are stuck in a snow storm ...

Christmas is coming and there is magic in the air in our cabin in the hills. We have just had a wonderful weekend and the week is starting off great as well. Saturday the young women in our ward, including our beautiful Miss Jane, babysat in the Tri-stake center next to the Oakland temple so that everyone in our ward who wished to could attend the temple. It was a very blessed gift, a wonderful way to begin the month. Our whole family drove up to the temple together, including the puppies in their crates. Two young women dedicated themselves entirely to the care of the charming Sawyer, Jane helped, as did one of the young men. Hmmm.... hopefully the other children were watched over with such loving care. Sunday was fast Sunday and also one of my favorite events of the whole year, the First Presidency Christmas Devotional. Mike hooked Jane's lap top up to our old big t.v. in our bedroom and all of us piled on the bed to watch. Pres. Uchtdorf 's talk was especially touchi...

If we are referring to Sawyer and Ellyn. The other two are with dad at the movie theater watching BOLT in 3D on military discount night. How much more exciting can life get? The dogs and I are hanging out in the clean (I include that because I am really savoring the moment), cozy, warm, living room. No music, no tv, no kids, no barking, no phones, no husband, just an occasional creak from the rusty, aged gas heater beneath the window. It feels very weird. Kind of nice though, a little time to catch up. You see, with Mike home there is actually nothing that we have done separately until tonight. Within reason, we don't take poopy diapers out to the garbage can together, he doesn't stand beside me while I blow dry my hair or put my makeup on either. I'm just saying I don't have that 45 minutes or so after the kids go to bed where I sit in my bed and check my email, write on the blog, and write a few quick messages on Facebook. Frankly, I have enjoyed the change. ...

Happy Birthday, Mike! Posted by Marnie at 11:30 AM Thought I'd give you and Brooke a little present to celebrate your reunion... ;) 3 comments Links to this post Friday, November 28, 2008

Baby Finn I really hope Jason and Ellynn don't hate me for posting the first pics of little Finn. Let's just say that in the next couple days when the puffiness goes down and you see more of what he's really going to look like, they'll be a plethora of pics on here. (: We went to visit Ellynn a few hours ago and what a sweet, alert baby Finn is! Jason is very protective of Finn, already, and I'm sure he'll be just fine when Daddy's around, seeing that a good 10 smothering cousins will be on him every second! Geof. thought it'd be funny to pretend he was nursing.. Not the best pic, but we see a lot of Adam in there!

Carmel Valley Thanksgiving Posted by Dave at 9:09 PM We joined Mike and Brooke and family and Mom and Dad in Carmel Valley, CA for Thanksgiving. We ate at a place (Brooke knows the name) that reminded me of Martha's Vineyard or something. Really neat place and a delicious meal. Also, no PREP or CLEAN UP! Then we had an awesome time hanging out at Mike and Brooke's playing games and just sharing time together. We wish we could have stayed longer. It reminds me of the times M&B and Adina and I would get together in Provo and just hang out. Good times....good times....... Dave Sadie and Morgan before the feast Sawyer cleaning his plate Ellyn Two words: Rib Eye For the Non-Traditionals The Traditional Adina and Taylor Parker the bathroom guide and Jane the Non-Traditional Dessert person We had our own private room and a big table, what an awesome place!

My boy Posted by Mike at 7:46 PM Already learning. Must be genetically encoded. -- Post From My iPhone

We have had a great (Thanksgiving)break. Dad is home, which is the best part of it, cousins and grandparents came Thanksgiving Day and the cousins left late that night but grandparents stayed until right this second. I loved this week because, it is back to... well, I do not know if I should say "normal" because it is not normal to be as a whole family. I do not want the break to be over. It felt too short. At least we get Christmas break in three school weeks. Happy Birthday to all the birthday people this week!(Grandma Barb, Dad, and Meagan). Love to everybody. Jane

My Michael is coming home . You can't just say it. You have to SING it. Tomorrow my tall, strong, gorgeous, husband will be here and it will be beautiful. He will nestle into the life of our family and we will have him with us, here, in our house, in our family . He'll help put on jammies and read stories, and tutor Jane in math. He'll take me on dates and wrestle at least one child during sacrament meeting. He'll snuggle me in bed at night and nuzzle my neck while I'm doing dishes. We'll go for walks and play games and watch movies and do fun family Saturday stuff. He'll help carry a kid down to the car and then he'll drive while I put on my makeup ! We love him, we know how much he loves us. We can't wait! Don't worry, I won't work him to death. I won't make him cook dinner every night for the next 10 months or hand over the kids and take off to the spa for the weekend (tempting, but... no). We just want him HERE. I kee...

Have not been blogging for a while. Sorry I have been super busy. I am so excited for dad to come home. We are going to have a big Thanksgiving Day with Dave and Adina and Grandma Barb and Papa(so excited to see you guys by the way!) Well, I better go. Nothing too interesting going on otherwise I would blog more tonight. I love everbody. Jane

Wow, Congrats Geof. Geof., I am so proud of that killer math grade. Truly a Bennett. Leash and Lyd, I've had a hard time even thinking about writing on the blog, how can I put into words my extreme jealousy? I have only wanted to go to a U2 concert since 1992 but the timing or the money has never worked out. Mike looked into getting me a ticket for this concert but it was so expensive for two and I didn't want to be a loser and go by myself. So... I guess I'll be seeing them when they are 65 or so on some reunion tour. Leash, I would have felt sorry for you about the toilets until I read about U2. Adam and Mindi, I'm glad you are having such a great month. Your family has been truly blessed. Cameron, Leash, Jess, anyone else that I don't have an address for. Will you please post your addresses on the blog and sometime during the holidays (possibly including Valentine's Day) you will get a Christmas card. Life here is great. Very busy. I took the girls on a t...

Part of what I wanted to do was eventually transfer over past blogs from our family blogs. Since I am slammed right now, trying to get everything ready for my husband and family I thought now would be a fabulous time. So here is a poem I wrote for Mike after he complained that I hadn't mentioned him in my blog (he was in Korea and feeling very left out). It was written in about 15 minutes so don't expect perfection- )Oct. 2005 ODE TO MICHAEL Michael, my love, you were sent from above to fill my life with joy. We have three gorgeous girls, two that have curls, but alas we do not have a boy. But that's cool with you. You've never been blue, you've taken it all in stride. Our life has been magic, sometimes a bit tragic. But hey, that's part of the ride. Whatever I do, I know I have you to back me when things get rough. I know you're a softie, a lover, a friend, although to a sranger you're tough. When I think of you I see Mt. Dew, poured into glass...

Ask me just how I get sucked in to watching made for T.V. Disney movies about cyber chicks and finding that Hannah Montana lines are now part of my every day dialogue. "Why, why, why, why, why, no, no, no, no, no, you, you, you, you." Yep, that's Jackson on Hannah. It's a phrase that comes in quite handy though. Like when Sawyer dropped a glass bowl tonight, or when Ellyn dropped a glass yesterday, or when Ellyn dropped a plate Monday (I am running out of glasses, really and truly. I don't think I will replace them with glass, maybe some lovely Walmart plastic-BPA free of course). Or when I'm blaming my children for having my brain sucked away by the Disney channel this evening. Also, another fun line is "Daddy's little convict says what?" Billy Ray Cyrus a.k.a. Robbie Ray uses that one. I am neither a dad nor do I have a daughter that is a convict yet I still enjoy saying it. What can I say? An hour of Disney (tonight 1 and a half) kee...

This morning Mike was reading a part of my brother and sister-in-law's blog to me out loud. Tracey was saying that they had just purchased a new camera for Christmas. She said that Christmas always comes in November for Tom. This made me giggle. It is the same at our house, Christmas in November, Mike's November birthday in October, Father's Day in April. The boy knows how to work the holidays (can I ever just let him get absolutely nothing on the actual day? Well, yes, sometimes but not often). Except... this November the Christmas came for me. Mike bought me a new camera (we didn't even know that both families were buying cameras). My poor Canon SD 1000 never completely recovered from the Gatorade. The monitor is faded with crystal like stars across the surface. The pics do turn out, if you can tell what you have taken a picture of to begin with. Antyway... last week my sweet husband suggested that we might go for a more professional style camera. He sai...

Scrubbed up the strollers and the dog crates and cleaned up the garage . We were going to put up Christmas decorations but it was 82 degrees, that's right- BEAUTIFUL!!!! Not Christmas decoration putting up weather. Decorated Sadie's Feather for her 1st grade class Thanksgiving project. Is that a killer feather or what? Made several batches of truffles . I had made the ganache for Enrichment Tuesday night but it didn't cool in time. Dang. So I took soup and a centerpiece (my new calling is being on the Enrichment Committee) and called it good. Oh, I did help set up, that's what we did as one of our errands on Tuesday. Do you see how I am rationalizing the fact that the girls and I made truffles off and on for about four days and ate them all ourselves? Sadie loved to dip them in the unsweetened cocoa. We have a fine layer of cocoa on dishes, counters, clothing, etc... Took the puppies to the Carmel Community Park . It is a great big field where a million dogs...

Yesterday Ellyn and I had appointments at the dermatologist. Ellyn has some little flat warts above her upper lip and under her chin and I have to have a full body check every 6 mos. after my little brush with skin cancer last fall. We were off to an auspicious start when Ellie began working on a poopy diaper about 3 minutes before we pulled into the clinic parking lot. We were already running 5 minutes late due to the fact that I thought my Dr. had said that the clinic was in the Valley when it was in fact in downtown Monterey and I hadn't given myself enough travel time and hadn't looked up the actual address until it was too late. As we pulled into the parking lot, whilst trying to talk to my husband on the phone, I look over into the passenger seat and realized I didn't have my diaper bag. I had just picked up my van from the body shop and I had grabbed the car seats out of Mike's car but not the diaper bag. I scrounged around and found three Sawyer diapers tucked i...

Mike thinks my blog about being Alpha makes me sound psycho. It could be because I am. Our four day weekend is over, very sad. However, today did not feel like a day off. It was full of appointments and running around, mostly scheduled when I didn't realize it was going to be Veteran's Day and the kids would not be in school. They were such champs though, especially Jane, she took such good care of her siblings. Actually, they were all pretty incredible in their own way. Mike and I are on the phone hanging out in companionable silence right now. He's listing all the places he's lived on some sort of Facebook application and I am writing this blog. I can't wait till we can hang out in companionable silence in the same room. He can lay here on our bed next to me with his lap top propped against his knees and a big comfy pillow behind his back and I can do the same. Except.... I can tuck my feet under his and he can keep me warm. Mmmmm.... that will be f...

Sawyer cannot hang out lower than the dogs for the next little while. Sawyer's spit is to be put in the dog's food before they eat. Sawyer must be carried through the doorway first, ahead of the dogs. Sawyer is on a total power trip. It's all going to his head. NO, not my cute little Soy Bean. We had a little incident the other night. Sawyer grabbed at Joe's face and Joe 1 snapped at him. Not an "I'm going to bite you" snap, I don't think, but alarming and scary none the less. I don't want to hear "Sawyer shouldn't have grabbed at his face" because I don't and he's learning. This also came after the puppies started gaining all sorts of freedom in the home- being potty trained and all. Google to the Rescue- I was reminded that we need to establish each member of our family as "ALPHA." We are now doing Alpha Canine Bootcamp (luckily I have read Eclipse and Breaking Dawn and perhaps I might have learned ...

Mike just called and I have to say I was still fairly breathless. I could not wait to tell him what I had just been doing. Ellyn and I had just finished a game of peek a boo. A game of peek a boo where Ellyn said "peek a boo" about 10 times! It gets better. After we had played peek a boo for quite a while (we do this by throwing her quilt over her head and then pulling it off and tickling her cute little neck) I told Ellie it was time for bed and kissed her and turned out the light. After a few seconds she started crying. I came back into her room and sat on the floor and started singing, I had a feeling she might get upset, I have to kind of distance myself at bedtime or she is really sad when I leave her. So... I was singing to Ellyn for a little while and she was quiet for a bit and then she started crying again. I looked up at her and asked if she still wanted to play and (drum roll please) SHE NODDED HER HEAD YES!!! It gives me the chills just to write that. ...

Mike made fun of my overzealous use of font colors and sizes. However, I was so amazed to find that it had only been a tab away this whole time that I just couldn't resist trying it out. So mostly just to annoy the husband that I love, I just might be writing in color alot.... Mom: So Sadie, we haven't heard from you lately, how's it going? Sadie: Good, are we doing that question thing? Um...Great! Mom: What did you do today? Sadie: (she wants pink, daddy) I went to lunch. I talked to people. I had lunch recess. I chased boys, that's all I did. I chased boys everywhere. Mom: Why were you chasing boys? Sadie: Because I like to, it's an Army game. Mom: What do you want to do with daddy when he gets home? Sadie: Play the wii with him and Guitar Hero and Rock Band and the boardgames ( Jane is begging me to add that she agrees with Sadie). Mom: Sadie wants me to ask her if she wants a laptop. Sadie, do you want a laptop? Sadie: (Now she wants red, this ...

Yesterday was an amazing Ellyn day. So amazing that she gets her own little post. Yesterday morning we dressed her up as a princess . I wondered if she would care if I put on makeup. I brought out my huge hand mirror and put this color eyeshadow on her eyes. She looked in the mirror and then smiled and touched her eyelids lightly with her fingertip. Then... I got out my lip gloss and instead of trying to eat it she pursed her lips and let me put it on. We were all so excited. The next beautiful moment came in the van. Jane had already left on her bus and we were waiting for Ellyn 's. We were singing Primary songs and started singing " I am a Child of God ." This is Ellyn 's favorite song, it soothes her like not many things can. Sometimes I sing it over and over in the night to help her calm down and go back to sleep. I decided long ago that this was the message I wanted Ellyn to absorb more than anything else in this world, that she is a beloved child...

You know how some holidays just pass by before you even know it? I am happy to report that Halloween did not, at least not this year. Last Saturday we had the Trunk or Treat , Wednesday night when we got home from Young Women the owl that hangs out in a tree near my bedroom window was hooting eerily in the dark night . We all spent a few minutes getting ourselves a little freaked out. There is a reason that owls are Halloween birds, they sound very, very creepy . Unfortunately, when I wake up in the middle of the night the Who Who Who keeps me awake and a teensy bit frightened. But I digress, Thursday night we watched "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," "Skeleton Dance," and "Lonesome Ghosts" on my lap top. It wasn't the fabulous Halloween picnic by the lake that the Washington Bennetts had but it was pretty fun. It was raining and blustery outside and the girls had to sleep on the couch. You know how scary those Disney cartoons can be. F...

Okay, Mike and I have not had to pay for utilities because of gov't. housing for many years. We are kind of out of touch on the whole cost of utilities thing but I just got our new Oct. bill for gas and electric and it was for $355.00. To me that feels outrageously high. Before any of you answer. Our gas is $45 for heat, we don't even have Mike's computer here yet. We don't even really watch t.v. on the weekdays, not even on the weekends for that matter, and I don't have my deep freeze plugged in. No xbox, wii, nothing (that's one of the reasons I am very frightened). I'm freaking out a little bit and I need input before I approach the electric company or my rental agency with some kind of conspiracy theory. Let me know, PLEASE!!!! P.S. The flute is safe and sound. The camera is recovering slowly.

Happy to report that Sawyer's top tooth came in today with absolutely no fussing. The kid is amazing. The other should follow anytime now. It is gleaming white and shiny and tight against his little gums. I swear this boy is the cutest kid alive. Ellie was an angel today, lots of happy noises and kisses. I love those. We had an at home visit with her teacher, which was lovely, and then drove out to Salinas for an assessment by a Dr. for the regional center. They have to do their own diagnosis and guess what???? Ellyn is autistic. I know, you are as surprised as I am. Jane's day was not so great. Whatever you do, don't mention a missing flute or my broken camera. Also, say little prayers that involve something like "please bless that Jane's flute will still be on the bus tomorrow and that Brooke's wonderful camera that she loves will dry out after having Gatorade seep into all of its crevices from a bottle that Jane failed to close correctly and left ...

I totally took out Jane's whole bag of candy from the Trunk or Treat while I was sitting in the van on Sunday feeling sorry for myself. Now I owe her lots of chocolate and I owe my treadmill lots of miles.

Jane just sent me two annoying forwards. As I rolled my eyes and complained she told me she had to, she had no choice. If she didn't than Carmen would come and get her through the sewer, the toilet, or the shower. I'm going to risk it, no forwarding for me.

Life is good. I am over my bad weekend. I had a really good day today. I called on the van, got some more things done for Ellyn, took Sawyer to the pumpkin patch for our ward's play date, and talked to Mike for a good long while. That guy makes me happy. Ellyn gave me a huge smile through the window on the bus when I walked down to the end of the driveway to pick her up this afternoon. My friend (okay, yes, I am starting to make friends) Christine called to make plans for Halloween night and Sawyer was cracking me up as he got the knack of dipping his graham cracker in my glass of milk. By the by, Sawyer now goes down for naps and bedtime with less than a minute of water works. Not even time to work the water actually. He is also only nursing in the middle of the night. That is when I bring him back into my bed for the rest of the night. I love snuggling my babies. I am very sleepy this afternoon. I think it might be an early night. It's cloudy today and feels like...

Weepy- Jane didn't get to play in her last soccer game. Jane didn't weep. I felt like weeping for her. Weepy- Saturday I pulled into the church parking lot to drop Sadie off at the Primary Presentation practice. Someone had opened the gate but failed to secure it and as I pulled into the drive it swung into my car, bounced back and slammed into the back of my van. Now, since I haven't had a chance to get the other fender fixed from the woman who clipped me at Sadie's ballet, I have three messed up corners on my new, beautiful van. Weepy- Saturday night I got to sit all by myself and try to feed Ellyn and Sawyer at the Halloween Potluck. I miss having friends. Weepy- We woke up very early SO that we could get to church 45 minutes early SO that we could sit near the front SO that we could see Sadie in the previously mentioned PPP. For some reason the children singing upset Ellyn and she kept crying. I stood at the very back of the overflow, holding Ellyn, watchi...

I am trying to wean Sawyer and get him to fall asleep in his crib. All preparations for daddy coming home and because his nap time is getting ridiculous. I couldn't think of how to really do one without the other since he nurses to sleep and so tonight he was really, really tired and so I told him we weren't going to nurse and that he was going to go to sleep in his crib. He cried for 40 minutes. Way better than Ellyn's all nighter when she was 20 mos. but it was the saddest thing ever, especially when he kept calling out "Mamma." First night down, I have to be strong. As my mother told me long ago, "You were a much more practical older sister than you are a mom." Easy, I didn't like them as much! Oh, Ellynn and Brind, you will always be the babies. Don't you worry. Sawyer, when you are a teenager and you are blaming me for all your woes you can trace it all back to this night, but you must also know how much I love and adore you and ho...

PLEASE play along------ Hit forward and place an X by all the things you've done and remove the X from the ones you have not. Answer the 30 questions at the end and send it to your friends (including me). This is for your entire life! (x) Gone on a blind date (x) Skipped school (x) Watched someone die (x) Been to Canada (x) Been to Mexico (x) Been to Florida (x) Been lost (x) Been on the opposite side of the country (x) Gone to Washington, DC (x) Swam in the ocean (x) Cried yourself to sleep (x) Played cops and robbers ( ) Recently colored with crayons (x) Sang Karaoke (x) Paid for a meal with coins only? (x) Done something you told yourself you wouldn't? (x) Made prank phone calls (x) Laughed until some kind of beverage came out of your nose (x) Caught a snowflake on your tongue (x) Danced in the rain ( ) Written a letter to Santa Claus (x) Been kissed under the mistletoe (x) Watched the sunrise with someone you care about (x) Been skinny dipping outdoors (on a cold dar...