261/365

Today we got our family pictures done.  Not just a little family picture, all 26 of us.  Like how Brighton is making a funny face? Avery is sitting in such a feminine way.  Kaden looks shocked that we are taking a picture, I look like a hippo and Brian's ski beard, (ok... he looks pretty hot) Wow... the Larsen's (minus brian) sure added humor to this picture.

260/365

Happy Birthday Shauna!! 

We love you. 

We had a great night with all of Brian's brothers and sisters as we celebrated Shauna's 60th birthday tonight. It was such a fun night. We had a yummy dinner at our house and enjoyed a night full of games and lots of childhood memories and even more laughs.

259/365

After my post yesterday, I felt a little better about things until I went to pick up Connor off the floor and saw he had pooped all over the carpet.  OH BOY! Let the melt-down begin!
I kinda freiked out, called a carpet cleaner and scheduled a time for him to come today, started gutting every drawer, cupboard and closet in my house and had my little self a crazy person moment.  I made it to the preschool thing, but the rest of the day was left to crazy Turia de-cluttering my house.
Today ended up being a good theraputic day for me.  I got to clean all day long. Usually that would not be my favorite thing in the world, but when my head is cluttered, my house is cluttered, I needed a day to just clear my head and clean my house.  It was a great day! I feel much better!!

So now, my carpets are clean, my cupboards, drawers and closet is organized and I'm back to being not so crazy.  Whew! Glad my little melt down is over.  Sometimes it takes being a crazy person to get stuffed cleared out of your head.  Sorry Brian. You chose to marry me :)

258/365

All year long I've been capturing moments in our every day life.  I have commented over and over again how I don't want my kids to grow up.  Today I felt a little hypocritical of that and it made me stop and think about my priorities a bit.

Like usual, we all have crazy weeks and days that we are just running here and there. The last few days have been like that for me. I've been working on wedding cakes (surprise, surprise) and have been trying to clean my house all week.  The more I try to deep clean specific rooms, the messier the rest of the house gets. So, needless to say, it's now Thursday and my house is a dive, I'm feeling like I'm living in chaos and I just want a few hours to myself where I can regain focus and clean and organize my house, so I can feel organized again.  Well, this afternoon was supposed to be my time to be able to get a handle on things.
 I got home from Avery's dance class with high hopes for a peaceful 3 hour break....But as usual, it never works out as smoothly as planned.

Got Bright off to preschool.
Got Avery on the bus.
Time to put Connor to bed, but Angie needed some help, so I ran over there for about an hour. That took some of my cleaning time away, which is fine because I love being able to help her in any way since she is ALWAYS there to watch my kids or let me borrow whatever I need.

So I get home and remember that I'm supposed to go to Brightons preschool class today the last 30 minutes to talk about family rules since that's their theme this week.  

                             Here's where I feel I'm needing to change my priorities a bit.  

So, all I want to do is get my dumb house clean.  Why is that such a difficult task?? 

I find myself playing the game in my head where you have the angel on one shoulder and the devil on the other.  In my head, I'm having this little conversation with myself. 

Angel Mom: "I should really go to this preschool thing for Brighton"

Devil Mom:  "Just stay and clean your house"

Angel Mom:  "Remember he's only little once"

Devil Mom: "Oh my gosh, he's only 3... it doesn't matter."

Angel Mom:  "But I should take every opportunity to enjoy the things that matter most. "

Devil Mom:  "Seriously?? Does going to a preschool full of a bunch of 3 year olds and talk about your poster of family rules that you just made up 2 minutes before he left for school really what matters most?? JUST STAY HOME AND CLEAN YOUR HOUSE ALREADY!!!!! IT'S YOUR ONLY BREAK ALL WEEK!" 

Angle Mom:  "But............."

Devil Mom:  "It's preschool already! Geez!! He's your third kid.  It's not that big of a deal. You barely get him dressed each day, why go and listen to a bunch say they need to eat all their dinner and share their toys?  You can talk about rules at home with him. Go clean your damn house. "

Angel Mom: "ahhhh! Oh my!" (gasp!!)  (angel mom would never use the "d" word, but Devil mom can get a potty mouth from time to time).  "You are a terrible mother!" Focus on the things that matter most! Your house does not matter! Showing your kid that you have 15 minutes to be with him DOES matter.  

Maybe the lesson here is for you, Devil mom.... it's not about listening to a bunch of silly rules at a preschool class, but it's about YOU showing your child that they will ALWAYS come first... no matter what." THEY are what matters most.  Not your (uh, hum.... ) "darn" house."

Devil Mom:  (grumble.grumble) "I know, you are right. You win. I'll go get in the car."

The moral of the story is..... Many times as a mom I am struggling with my double identity, but more times than not, I hope Angel Mom wins out when it comes to my family.  Devil mom has her place too, but with the things that matter most, Angel mom needs to ALWAYS win!
Thank goodness she did today.

257/365

Sometimes it's the simple things that make the biggest impression on your kids.
Tonight Brian invited Avery to be his "date" to a wedding reception he had to go to for a co-worker.  We told her that the bride would look like a beautiful princess in a pretty white dress and their would be dancing too.  She was so excited, she ran in her room and got on a dress. We got her hair all done up pretty and wanted sparkles in her hair, so she got pretty sparkles.
When she was all dolled up, she went in to Brian and held the sides of her dress as she swayed back and forth and waited for Brian to tell her how beautiful she was.  She lit up and was ready to go on her date.

I'm glad she got to be something special with just her and her dad.  She felt pretty special.

256/365

This little guy is really starting to enjoy real food! 

He LOVED the corn Brian grew in our garden this year. 

He's also a little obsessed with peaches.  

It started out pretty good.

until we didn't give it to him fast enough.

You would have thought we were starving him to death.

Like I said, He LOVES peaches.

255/365

Went downstairs to get all the 12 month boy clothes today.  As much as it makes me sad that Connor is growing up so fast, I gotta admit, its great knowing I don't have to store old clothes anymore.  Those 3 boxes of 12 month clothes now is an empty space in my storage room!!!
 I love getting rid of things.

254/365

Kaden decided to do a little target practice with his sling shot today.  

This cutie took score. Wherever Kaden is, she is always close behind. 

She ADORES her older brother. 

253/365

Brian got home from his fishing trip with Dan today.  4 days in the high uintah's is the best 5 star resort in relaxation for Brian.  I'm glad he got to go to his happy place.
When you see places like this, how can you not be happy?

Couldn't have had better company this his bro.  

This is not fishing story... they caught 50 fish in a matter of a couple hours on Friday.  

Now, that's some fun fishing!

Were they trying to make a signal fire? What is this thing?

Yep.. they had to do a little skinny dippin in the ice cold snow run off.

252/365

Tonight was late over at our house. I had some great little helpers tonight.
Poor Camri broke her arm last night and ended up having surgery to put 3 pins in her arm just this morning.   Even though the kids have late over every weekend, they still love being together. Camri didn't want to hanging out with her cousins, so she came and chilled with us tonight.

Avery and Abby were so sweet to Camri. They got her food, kept her comfortable, read her stories, helped her draw pictures.

I hope they will always be there for eachother.

251/365

Huh????

Sometimes you got to wonder how things enter in your kids brains.
Kaden is our wiggler. Since he was a tiny baby, he has never stood still.  He flips and turns, spins and jumps, wiggles and kicks all the time.

Today I noticed him wiggling on the floor on his stomach, laying on his hands and pushing his but up in the air.  I didn't pay much attention to it because honestly, it's not too uncommon for him to be doing some type of wiggling :) But then he said, "Man, how do caterpillars not get tired doing this all day long?"

Seriously?  Was he pretending to be a caterpillar?  Just thinking about it makes me laugh in a sort of perplexed way.  I don't know about that kid.

250/365

Brian left for a backpacking trip today for 4 days.  The kids had a special note waiting on their beds for them tonight.

It made their night.  I wish I could have captured their smiles better.  It was priceless.

They sure love their daddy. Just look at that smile as Kaden is reading his note. How cute is that?

249/365

Today was a great day!

Kaden and Avery went back to school from being off track for 3 weeks and this little guy started preschool!

I can't believe it! How did this happen? It seems like just yesterday that Kaden started his first day of preschool, now we're on kid #3 turning into a big boy! Wow... time flies by WAY too fast.

Proud big sister. She kept asking Bright today if he was excited to go to preschool. When we dropped him off she said, "Good luck at preschool, Little Buddy!"

Kaden on the other hand was a little more conservative...

Last night he told me, "Mom, I'm a little nervous for Brighton to go to preschool tomorrow"

(luckily we didn't have a problem! He loved every second of it)

His teacher is Miss Amy.  When he sat down on his mat, he asked, "Do you have any toys?"

The cutest thing about the day was when we were on the way home. Brighton asked where Kaden and Avery were and I told him they were at school.  He sounded very disappointed and said, "ohhhh, I wanted to talk to them about preschool"  

247/365

Labor Day is bitter sweet between Brian and I....

Bitter for Brian because it's still warm
Sweet for me because we spent the day on the lake

Bitter for me because summer is over.
Sweet for Brian because winter is on its way.

Bitter for me because starting today, Brian starts growing his "snow beard"
Sweet for Brian because he gets to start growing his "snow beard"

Bitter for me because it's the last day we'll be on the boat taking cute pictures like this.
Sweet for Brian because it's just a few short weeks before he's on the slopes.

Why is summer so short?  Why is winter so fetchin long??? I'm already sick of it (and it hasn't even started yet)
At least we got to spend most the day on the boat. It was a good way to end off the summer.

246/365

Brian does some of the funnest family night lessons.
Today he taught the kids about Samuel the Lamanite.  He read the scripture story then we got to re-inact it.


In our family, there were three Samuel the Lamanites.  They all wanted a turn.

 

We were throwing "stones".  The object lesson worked. Thanks to my kids stellar aim, none of the marshmallow stones ever hit any of the Samuels.

But this guy grabbed the stones and ate them. Then he got into some chocolate.

What a cute mess.  I love his face. It's kinda like he's saying, "Oh, no! what have I done?"

245/365

It was baptism day!!!

Some of the funny things that happened today:

1) I couldn't find my keys this morning, so I had to start walking to the church with 3 little kids. Luckily my parents came to pick me up or I would have missed the baptism. As it was, we were 10 minutes late.

2) When the bishop brought Kaden up to the stand to talk a little about him, Bishop Ghiz said, "Kaden is here today with his dad, Brian and his mom, Turia" 

Kaden leaned over and corrected him saying, "My mom's not here" (he had't seen me come in)

Then the bishop looked up at me and pointed to where I was, I smiled and waved back at Kaden. 

He said, "Oh!" and he waved back to me. 

The whole congregation started laughing. This bishop said it was his favorite baptism moment of all time.

3) When Kaden was getting baptized, Bright was front and center. After it was over, he yelled out, "Holy Cow, Kaden just got dunked in the water!"

4)When we got home for our brunch, I noticed Kaden over jumping on the tramp and playing in the pond...... WITH HIS SUIT ON!!! 

 I wish I had a picture of it. First official day wearing his suit and was already rolling around in the grass, doing flips on the trampoline and splashing in the pond. 

Boys will be boys!

5) At the end of the day, Kaden came up to me (almost teary) and said, "Mom, it makes me sad when it's bedtime after I have had a really good day, because I don't want it to end"

Kade.... I didn't want it to end either... well beside the fact that I was exhausted and couldn't keep my eyes open, the day itself was awesome!

Here's a few pics of the day. 

He got to be baptized the same day as his buddy, Parker.

Dad and Kade still with wet hair.  I still remember getting my picture taken with wet hair from my baptism. Funny how small things spark your memory.

Grandpa Dallan and Grandpa John were the witnesses during the baptism

Kaden only had to go down once. Good job buddy!

Some of the awesome people who were at the baptism.

I love these grandparent shots.

244/365

NOTE TO FUTURE ME:    

 REMEMBER! REMEMBER! How special this night was and how special EVERY ONE OF YOUR CHILDREN'S baptisms will be.  Kaden was your first kid, so you went all out on him. Don't cheat Avery, Brighton and Connor out of special experiences just because it's not a new experience for you. They ALL deserve to have their baptism weekend as special as this one was!

Love, the energetic mom of 2011

What an awesome day we had today! We are one day from Kaden getting baptized and I knew that tomorrow was going to be crazy, so I wanted to have a special night with Kaden and his grandparents.

Most of my inspiration comes in the middle of the night when I can't sleep, this one was no different. I felt like it would be really cool to have a FHE-like meeting with Kaden where we could really talk about the importance of his baptism and not only why it's important for him to do it, but also why it's an important thing in our lives as well. So, I asked both Brian and my parents if they could write down their testimonies for Kaden and to take about 10-15 minutes and share with him their feelings of the gospel and the importance of baptism.

It was a night I hope I never forget. I know the night was for Kaden, but I was blessed tonight. My testimony was strengthened and I gained a new perspective for my own life. I want to be better spiritually. My kids make me want to be better. Listening to the testimonies to our amazing parents and feeling the spirit in my home tonight was just a little piece of what heaven will be like. If I could have the spirit in my home on a daily basis like I had tonight, I KNOW my kids will grow up to be protected from Satan's grasp. I know it's impossible to always have it like that, but I also realized how much I desire to have my home feel that way, and I want to do everything I can to try and make my home as close to heaven as possible.

So, here's how the night went.

First Grandma and Grandpa Larsen talked to Kaden about how baptism makes us clean and perfect. It washes everything away and that every Sunday when we take the sacrament, we can be clean all over again. She gave the sweetest testimony.  I think it's so important for these grandkids to hear and feel their grandparents share their love for the gospel.  John and Shauna set the tone for the whole night.
They gave him this towell to use when he got baptized.

Then Grandpa Larsen talked to Kaden about the Holy Ghost.  He told him he will always be there for him to help him in his life. I love this picture of him wrapping the blanket around Kaden. I think it not only symbolizes the Holy Ghost, but also that his grandparents will always be there to comfort him and make him feel special.

Grandma Becky went next.  She and grandpa talked about different things that would be important for him as a church member.  She gave him a few little gifts with little poems on them to help him remember how important they were.  (sorry mom... gotcha blinking or something)

Bookmark

"Reading the scriptures every single day, will keep you on the straight and narrow way..

Follow the scripture heroes! Do the things they do! They will help you stay strong and brave and true"

Goal Chart

Think about the things you really want to do, Reaching every goal is totally up to you!

If you think and work and try every single day, You will reach every single goal in every single way!

Bank

(lost the poem, but it was cute)

Pass Along Cards

When you are nineteen a missionary you'll be, but you can be a missionary now with everyone you see

Tell them about Jesus and that you love him so, Be an example of good everywhere you go!

Cub Scout Stuff

Being in cub and boy scouts is really super cool, but you must remember to obey every single rule

Following Akela is what it's all about, and soon you'll go from Wolf to an Eagle Scout!

Journal

Karate nights and days at school or just playing in the yard, Writing about your adventures isn't very hard

Take a minute every night and record for history, all the things you do each day and keep their memory.

After my mom shared her thoughts with him and her testimony, my dad talked about the Holy Ghost being Kaden's best friend. He compared the Holy Ghost to Kaden's favorite friend Grottle.  This is the picture of Kaden smiling when my dad first showed him grottle.  He then explained that the Holy Ghost is much like a best friend. You are happy when you are with them.

Lastly, it was our turn.  We gave him this picture frame that holds different "keys" that will unlock the door to heaven.  He will be able to continue to add pictures to as he reaches certain milestones or "keys" that will get him closer to heaven.  

and this is my favorite moment of the whole night.  And probably one of my favorite pictures I will ever take.  Brian took a minute to share his testimony to his little boy.  The power of a fathers testimony is indescribable.  If you have any doubt in that, look at Kaden's eyes.  He is listening more intently to his dad than he listens to anything.  I will treasure this picture forever.  I love these two boys so much.