Go Pearl!!!!

Pearl tested for her green belt this weekend. Last test, (I actually think I have to go back and blog about that still) she had a hard time... she got an incomplete for not being able to do her forms in all different directions, and it took her like 20 tries to break the board. She got kudos for perserverence, and she was able to finish her testing requirements during the next class, but it was a harrowing experience for her little soul.

Not so this time. She did an awesome job on her form, got complimented on her much improved balance, totally rocked the oral exam (Master Yi said she got 1000%:), and got an award for most improved in taekwondo.

And she broke her board in one try. I showed my mom the video. She said (with surprise) "she even looks graceful." Yes, that is what 18 months of taekwondo will get you:)

So proud of you Pearl!

Blessing.

We decided to have Ruby's blessing during sacrament meeting the same day the children had their primary program. Pearl was asked to play "I am a Child of God" for the children to sing, so I told my parents if they came to the primary program I wouldn't invite them to the recital. Lucky them. (She did absolutely amazingly fabulous, by the way, she even followed the conductor and everything, I was so proud of her!). Anyways, it was a busy morning, we have early church and live about half an hour away from the building. I got up and got myself ready, got the boys ready, and at the last minute, got the baby dressed and sat down to feed her right before we left.

See? What a pretty dress! It's the same one that Pearl and most of the Weir girl cousins were blessed in... it's beautiful. She should have been honored to wear it.
She wasn't. Five minutes after I got it on her, she had her 2nd blowout in her entire life. Seriously. You wait until today? We had 10 minutes before time to leave, so I quickly slipped the burp cloth underneath her so she didn't get me, finished feeding, snapped a few pictures (yes, these were post-poop) and got her in one of her regular church dresses.
So, this is what she got blessed in. She's still adorable, and I daresay, much much cozier. Do I think she did it on purpose?
Yes. That is one smug little smile:)

How I know...

I have a crooked smile. In fact, I think my whole face is crooked.

How do I know that Ruby is my daughter? Take a look. Totally my kid.

'Cept I think she's cuter than I am:)

Family

This is us. Boy, there are a lot of us now. We walked into a restaurant last week and they nice lady said "how many?" My first thought was, too many. Too, too many:) Here's to lots of years of craziness as a family of six!

Repentance

Sam and Max love each other so much. Sam is usually so patient with him, as Max likes to sit on him, hit him, and show him a lot of tough love. Sam always forgives (he forgives Pearl too, who most of the time is a little less deserving...) and is happy to play with Max.

Except for tonight. The boys were showering together, and Max wouldn't listen to Sam, so he hit him. For which he got in huge trouble, well, a spanking and a 30 second lecture. He burst into tears. I went back to check on him and tell him that I loved him a few minutes later, and he was still so sad. I asked him why, and he said he just felt so bad that he hurt his little brother. Never have I seen such remorse for sibling violence. Once he got out, he was still upset, so he got dressed and gave hugs and was still a bit teary eyed, so Jared helped him say a prayer of repentance, and when he got to the part where he said he was sorry for hitting his brother, he teared up AGAIN.

Now, Max is sick, so this could just mean that Sam is on his way down, but I think it shows such a sweetness of spirit. Sam holds a special place in our family, and though he never listens and he's such a poky and I'm very afraid of how he's been behaving in school, he has such a tender, loving heart. We're so lucky to have his little spirit in our family.

He says he'll never hurt his little brother again. Here's to hoping! And actually, I think he really will. Try, at least:)

Max

I have a lot of blog catch up to do. And I will do it, I really don't want to let that slide.

But Max is in the ER with Jared. And I'm worried. It's also 10:48 pm and I'm very tired, so I think I will TRY to get some sleep. He's not breathing well, they're checking for pnemonia now because he has a pretty high fever for a little guy. So so sad and pathetic.

So, as I was downloading the 600 pictures on my camera to add to the 400 pictures I still have to go through, this one caught my eye. It's one of the reasons I love Max. He is always SO HAPPY!!!! I think that 2 year olds are my favorite, I haven't had too bad in the terrible twos department, so I still like that age. Well, I'd have to, I work almost exclusively with 2 year olds for my job. And I still like them.

Some things I love about Max are: he is always happy, he is SUPER cute when he says "love you mama" when I put him to bed, he always says "thanks" unprompted, and I love watching him try to keep up with Pearl and Sam. Every once in a while he can be on the fringes of their game (for example, if it involves a chase of some sort, he gets that part), and he loves it so much!

Love love love my boy. So glad to have a Max in the family.

Trunk or Treat

This was again another year of TONS of halloween parties. The last one was the church trunk or treat with our friends, the Larsens. It was great, they did it early, so it was light enough to see the kiddo's costumes and to not have to worry so much about where the boys went. We got to have Maya with us for some our Halloween festivities this year, which was super extra fun:)

As you know, the big kids had He-Man and She-Ra themed costumes. Well, we couldn't leave Maya out, so she became Swiftwind, She-Ra's trusty steed. In preparation, John and Lora let her watch a few episodes of She-Ra. We had them watch one together, in fact, and she spent the entire time pointing at the screen and saying "SHE BAAA!!!!" Funny. I'm not sure that she ever pointed out Swiftwind, or even totally made the connection, but her costume was awesome. And she liked the candy.

This is Maya... what? I'm her sidekick?

Tornado spin? Count me in!!!!

Pearl and her bestest friend Makayla. Aren't they getting so grown up?
Sam and Evan. I can still never figure what it is they're talking about, but they seem to be communicating...
Chow time for the Masters of the Universe.
And sweet Ruby... rockin' the Baby Legs:) But no candy for her.
Super fun. Thanks, Larsen family, for inviting us!