Organizing has never been my talent. I like things to be clean on the outside, but if it's put away out of sight in a drawer, cupboard, or closet I typically don't think about it until it starts driving me crazy when it gets too full.
I had mentioned this to my friend Susan who is a master organizer. She set up a time with 3 other friends (Monica, Charlotte, and Rachel) to come over and organize my kitchen.
It is something that has been on my list for a long time and I have done it before but never very well. I feel like it goes back to the way it was before after a week.
These ladies came at 9:00 am and didn't leave until 3:00. They pulled every single thing out of my cupboards, drawers and refrigerator, vacuumed and wiped them all out, de junked, and put everything back in places that worked efficiently. If I would have done this on my own it would have taken me a week, not to mention the fact that I probably would have kept everything and had the same problem a week later. We took an entire trunkload of stuff from my kitchen to Goodwill! So many things that I don't use and should have gotten rid of years ago. Charlotte also brought brand new tupperware to replace all of my old stuff.
When they left and it really soaked in what a gift they gave me I sat in my kitchen and just cried. So much so that when Shad walked into the house he thought that one of our children had died (granted I had just gotten off the phone with him because Haken was on the other line.)
I'm a pretty emotional pregnant woman right now but I was just so grateful for good friends who would take an entire day to focus on me and what would be a blessing for me and then just do it. I seriously have the best friends in the world. They are such a blessing and make it feel like I might just make it through having twins with their help.
I finally got proof that sometimes Benny and Ruby actually play together and don't fight.
We watched General Conference, ate cinnamon rolls, and delivered extras to our neighbors. It was an exciting conference as they announced new changes like the 2 hour block and the family centered approach to teaching.
Shad and I took a trip up to Minneapolis for the midwest area husband/wife convention. We left the kids with James and Monica for 4 days. We learned some really great things to implement in our family including "Mastery Monday's" where we will work on finding answers through doctrinal mastery.
We also had an opportunity to serve at "Feed my starving children". putting together manna packs that would be shipped off to Jamaica. It was such a great experience. I would love to take my kids there one day to serve too.
We are so grateful for good friends that are like family and are willing to take on all of our kids. They moved into our house for 4 days to make it easier on our kids too. Between our family and theirs, they had 9 kids running around.
Laney also liked being Ruby's personal stylist....
Monica did some fun things with the kids while we were gone like visiting the fire station open house.
Ruby has been a dream toddler, but lest you think that she is always happy, here is proof that she does get stuck in her ways and has meltdowns every once in a while. They are ridiculous and cute all at the same time.
It was a super warm October, but when we returned from Minneapolis it was cold all of the sudden. We went from 80 degree weather to 50 degrees. It was 54 degrees outside but they just had to eat their ice cream outside after dinner. I think we are all in denial that Fall is actually here.
I had 20 women running around my kitchen compiling freezer meals. We ended up making 264 meals in about 2.5 hours. Between that night and another night compiling meals in Champaign early November I have 32 meals in my freezer ready to go when the babies get here....or before (I've already starting using them as I've lost motivation to cook).
We went to Rader Farms in Normal on early out day. My kids love this place and look forward to it every year. Steph came and helped us out. I took Jack into his appointment in Peoria while they went to Rader Farms and then we met back up with them and Shad for another hour of play.
Benny learned how to draw people. This is a picture of him with "his babies". I'm glad that he is starting to show that he knows what is going on and talks about it.
My friends Monica and Charlotte threw me a baby shower at Charlotte's house. I didn't get pictures of anyone there, but I did remember to take pictures of her cute decorations. People are so generous. We received so many diapers and wipes to get us started with the twins.
Gracie and Jack have become pretty great friends. It makes me excited to see what Benny and Ruby's relationship will look like in a few years as they are the same distance apart.
Around here Halloween seems to last forever as we have lots of events going on. We started the weekend before Halloween at the ward trunk or treat. It was a good test to see how the kid's costumes would work out.
Since Gracie wanted to be a witch and Benny wanted to be lion we decided why not go for the Wizard of Oz theme with everyone else? I was able to find a brand new witch costume for Gracie and a cute little Dorothy costume for Ruby at the consignment sale. It fit Ruby perfectly and had all of the accessories including the bows, basket, and ruby red slippers. I bought Benny's lion costume on a classifieds page for $5.
I had to make Jack a tin man costume which I thought would be an easy task as I looked at tutorials online. It ended up being more of a labor of love than I thought. I was glad that I didn't have to make any other costumes because his took enough time for 4 costumes. I think he really liked it though.
Haken, being the preteen that he is, refused to be the scarecrow. The day of the trunk or treat he came up with his own costume. Of course, he was his favorite Cubs player, Jake Arrietta. He doesn't play for the cubs anymore, but he still loves him. This is the night of the trunk or treat. Shad helped draw on his beard. I think I see a resemblance here:
I had to get a picture of his beard after he came home from trick or treating/ party with his friends. He did the beard on his own and he said "the more I started drawing it on the worse it got." We were laughing pretty hard about the way it looked.
The ward trunk or treat was a lot of fun. I didn't get many pictures as we were just trying to enjoy the time together...and I'm just too tired lately.
The funniest thing about the night was Ruby's reaction to all of the face painting. She was absolutely terrified of all of the kids because they all had their faces painted. She kept saying "Haken scawee." In the car, we couldn't get her to remove her basket from her face.
She was also a little apprehensive to even stand by any of her siblings. We had to catch this picture really quick before she ran off. The kids got LOADS of candy at the trunk or treat. We had lots of chili at the cookoff and I didn't eat a single piece of candy or treats. I am trying to be really good. My blood sugar was still high that night, probably from the chili and cornbread.
The FHE before Halloween we carved pumpkins. I learned the hard way that I really should have bought Benny his own pumpkin too. Next year I will make sure we have one just for him. I just didn't want to be carving that many pumpkins! I think he still had fun though. Ruby just liked hanging out with everyone.
The pumpkin he got from the pumpkin patch a week earlier just didn't cut it.
Halloween wouldn't be complete with a lot of parties at school.
Gracie's class. She is on the back row on the end of the left side.
Jack's class on Halloween. He is in the back row in the middle. The most adorable tin man.
I went to Jack's class Halloween party and helped. In one game he wrapped his friend as a mummy.
Jack was the cutest little tin man in the storybook parade
Gracie walked so fast I didn't get a picture of her on the storybook parade but I got a quick video.
Halloween night was a success. The kids went around our neighborhood. Finn and Monica came with us. Haken was with his friends getting all of the big houses and hanging out. I love that the village of Mahomet limits trick or treating to the hours of 6-9pm. So much nicer as a parent, especially on a school night.
It was a little bit chilly so we opted to put Ruby in the chicken costume that we had. She was the cutest little chicken I have ever seen. Benny decided to be a superhero and wear the new mask that grandma sent in the mail.
Ruby really got the hang of saying "trick or treat" at every house. She was always so polite and said "dant you." I think it was my favorite part of the night.
Pretty proud of this kid. He is such a great student and he deserved every bit of this recognition as student of the month (October) for the 6th grade.
His teacher emailed me and told me about the assembly but told me not to tell Haken. Shad was out of town but I went with Benny and Ruby. I think when Haken saw me he knew that something was up. It was really fun to surprise him.
He is not only a good student but he is a good friend and nice to everyone.
We met while attending Utah State University in Logan, Utah and were married in August 2005. We moved to Central Illinois from Northern Utah in 2015 and we have loved the change even though we are away from our families. Shad is a religious educator for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and enjoys every day. I currently stay at home with my 7 kids and I love the sweet moments and even the chaos that sometimes comes with it. We have learned to roll with the punches with our big family. The greatest evidence of this is when we were going for "just one more" and ended up with two! That's pretty much become the story of our life.
Haken
Our intellectual 13-yr-old. He loves to be involved in every adult conversation and activity and he should be with how much responsibility he takes on in our household. He is a model student at school and has become a fantastic writer. He has a serious sweet tooth but hasn't had a single cavity. His new passion is road biking and loves to see how far and fast he can go. He has been a perfect first child. We have been spoiled with such a good young man who wants to please us in everything he does.
Jack
Exactly 3 1/2 years younger than his older brother, but you wouldn't know it by the way he plays with him. He was definitely worth waiting for, and brings so much joy into our family. In December 2013, just 3 days after his third birthday, he was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes but this hasn't stopped him from being the happiest kid you will ever meet. Checking his blood sugar and counting every carb before he eats hasn't slowed him down much. He recently switched to an insulin pump and it has been life changing. He has a contagious smile and rarely has a negative attitude. He is our "super Jack-Jack" and has become my little hero.
Gracie
Don't let this little girl fool you, she has more spunk in her body than most kids her size. She is our tiny little girl with loads of personality. She is a goof, just like her brothers. We have loved having a girl after two boys and she has really thrown us for a loop with her all-girl dramatic attitude. She loves everything fashion, sparkly, and pretty. At 6 yrs old she has an opinion about everything that goes on her. Her room is always spotless, there is a place for everything, and you better not mess it up. I'm sure we will be in big trouble when she grows up.
Benny
"Our little minion." He has a smile that will melt your heart and loves to cuddle. He is my master sleeper and is content doing things on his own. He loves anything on wheels and copies everything his big brother's do. He recently started preschool and has made huge strides in talking but we still often find ourselves playing "Benny Mad Libs" as a family trying to figure out what he is saying. This doesn't prevent him from getting his point across as he is a very determined child with lots of great ideas.
Ruby
Witty, smart, and sneaky. This girl rules the roost around here. She loves to sing songs and has a beautiful singing voice. She knows every word to every frozen song and belts them out. Her curly hair is a blessing and a curse as she hates having it brushed out but loves the curls. Already learning to read she is ready to start kindergarten next year and can't wait, especially since that means she will be with friends all day. She is a social butterfly and can't want to emerge from her cocoon.
Chapman and Tennyson
After trying for "just one more" we ended up with two! Having twins has its challenges, especially with 5 other kids to take care of, but we wouldn't have it any other way. It's like these two have always been here. Everyone adores them and can't remember what it was like before they came into our family. So different from eachother that they hardly seem like twins. We love these boys more than we ever thought we could.
