True Blue

We don't follow sports, but we really love BYU. This made me smile, and maybe a little misty-eyed.

Fog Lights

Did you know that fog can freeze? And that when it does it leaves an even sheet of ice on everything?

We had our first school cancellation due to inclement weather yesterday. I thought it would come from snow, but no, it came from freezing fog. Bryan went into work a few hours late to give the roads a chance to thaw, and even then he said there were a few hills that he almost wan't able to climb.

I had originally planned yesterday as a major grocery shopping trip, one where I would restock our pantry so it would be all ready for a new baby and a mom that probably won't be cooking much for a while. When school was cancelled, I changed my plans. Cooper was kind of sad and assured me that they would be really good if I took them all to the store. I didn't exactly laugh and say, "Yeah, right" though my response may have been along those lines. Mostly I didn't want to drive on the ice skating rink the roads had become, but I also didn't want to wrangle all three kids and my giant belly through the grocery store.

Instead we spent most of the day in pajamas (or comfy pants) and played Old Maid, read books, and watched movies. I did insist that some cleaning and homework take place, but we mostly relaxed. And while it would have been nice to fill up the pantry shelves, I really liked not having to fight with anyone to get dressed or eat breakfast or wear a coat.

Comfort Over Beauty

I reached 39 weeks a few days ago and thought it was time for another picture. 

Do you know what else it was time for? Comfy pants. I've gone almost this entire pregnancy without a pair of comfy pants. That's unthinkable. On Monday I paid a visit to Target and rectified that. I might live in these pants for the next few weeks, depending on when our girl decides she's ready to join us.

Brown Paper Packages Tied Up With String

I've been checking off more items on my stuff-to-be-done-before-the-baby-arrives list. This past weekend I wrapped all the Christmas presents. I woke up the next morning to the sound of tissue paper being ruffled. I pulled myself out of bed and hobbled to the loft where Bryan had moved all the gifts. Phoebe was sitting in front of them, watching. I told her not to open anything.

"Why?" she asked.

"Because we want them to be surprises," I said.

"Okay," she responded, "I'll only look in the boys' bags."

Thankfully, nothing has been opened, though upon seeing everything wrapped all the kids asked if it was Christmas morning. Except we still have more than two weeks to go.

Is this what it feels like to be organized?

Bundled Up

The kids have been mourning the fact that it's snowing in Utah and not here. They all miss the frozen white stuff. On Friday morning they got their wish. We woke up to a Winter wonderland. At least, we woke up to snow. There was just enough everywhere to make driving slick, but not much more than that. And we learned that they don't plow the roads here. I'm glad that I have so much driving-in-snow experience, otherwise I might have called an unofficial snow day for the boys.

School was not canceled, however. And though the snow wasn't deep, it sure was cold. I guess I felt the difference between arid cold and humid cold. The boys wore their snow boots and heavy coats to school. At pickup time I saw one of the older classes out playing in the snow. Several of the kids were in sweatshirts and shorts. I got cold just looking at them. When the boys got home in the afternoon I sat in my house, wrapped in a blanket, and watched the kids play in the snow in the backyard.

Now I truly appreciate the beauty of the fully-fenced backyard.

Winkin, Blinkin, and Nod

On Wednesday I moved Peter's bed into the playroom. He was thrilled when I asked if he'd like to have his own room. Cooper, on the other hand, was less excited about the idea. He didn't want to be alone. But about thirty seconds after his initial dejection, he perked up and I heard him say to himself as he looked around his newly empty room, "But now I have all this room to run!"

Bedtime came and I separated the kids into their own rooms. Phoebe was the first one asleep, which is how it usually happens. Peter snuck into Cooper's room at one point with the tempting offer of coming and jumping on his bed. Peter is good at suggesting activities that will get someone else in trouble. Cooper made the right choice and just came and told me about it rather than participating in the mayhem himself.

Amazingly, Cooper joined the world of slumber shortly after Phoebe. I was feeling pretty good about this move. Now I just had to wait for Peter to finally succumb to sleep.

I am so naive.

Every time I thought Peter was finally asleep he would wander out of his room with a question or a concern. I finally went downstairs because I was starving and almost dropped the dinner dishes I had been clearing from the table when he startled me from the stairs. It was 10:30 at this point. I'm afraid I was not particularly nice or patient anymore and told him (repeatedly) to go back upstairs and go to sleep. He kept saying no. It wasn't a pretty scene.

Apparently the new freedom brought with it new fears. While I was on the same floor, he could stay in bed. Otherwise, he was too afraid of his closet, his room, I-don't-know-what-else. He asked if he could go back and sleep on the floor of Cooper's room because he was lonely and afraid. A talk with Bryan calmed Peter to the point that we thought he would be able to sleep and he finally stayed in his bed.

When I checked on him at 11:50 (desperate for sleep of my own at this point) he was awake, reading. I'm really not sure what time he went to sleep.

Phoebe woke me up at 6:20 yesterday morning because she had to go to the bathroom, something that didn't require my assistance. In case you're wondering, that's not enough sleep for me. The morning... was rough. And until about 1:30 in the afternoon yesterday, I wandered around in a sleep-deprived haze. I finally plunked Phoebe down on my bed, put Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood on my laptop, and fell asleep holding her hand.

I must say, I was a much nicer mom in the afternoon and evening than I had been in the morning.

I am happy to report that last night Peter was asleep by 10:30, a full two hours earlier than the night before. He still wanted to move back into the old room, but he seemed more accepting when I said no.

Maybe tonight he'll shave another two hours off his bedtime. Not likely, but it would be lovely.

Like an Elephant, He Never Forgets

Packages often arrive at our house. Bryan is a big fan of online shopping and I'm not always aware that purchases have been made until a brown box shows up on our doorstep. At this time of year we've also been getting packages courtesy of the grandparents, so we're used to hearing a knock, then opening to a cardboard cube.

Since I rarely know what's in the boxes, I can usually say in all honesty, "I don't know," when the kids ask about the contents. When I do know and it's a surprise I just say that I'm not going to tell them. When it's not a surprise I share whatever knowledge I have.

Yesterday two packages arrived. I knew I wasn't supposed to open the first. The second was a complete mystery. Phoebe and Peter crowded behind me as I stepped onto the chilly porch to retrieve it. Peter's first question was, "What is it?" I told him I didn't know. Then he asked, "Is it a Christmas present?" Again, I didn't know.

At that point he turned back to walk into the house and said nonchalantly over his shoulder, "Oh I know, it must be my laminator."

Pros and Cons

Thanks to those that responded to my sleep question yesterday.

One benefit to your children staying up three hours past their bedtime is that they'll be exhausted the next night and fall asleep relatively quickly.

One downside is that you might get a call from the school principal letting you know that your kindergartner decided to add his own artistic flair to the exterior of the school by way of a crayon smuggled out in his pocket during recess.

We're in the process of deciding who we'll move to the other room.

Another Post About Sleep

Why is sleep so elusive?

We're almost to the point of separating the boys into their own rooms. I really don't want to give up the playroom. And more than that, I don't want them to get used to having their own rooms. For some reason I think going off to college and having a companion on their missions will be easier if they've had to share a room.

But we're at our wits end. Every night we send Cooper to bed while Peter sits and reads in the other room. This was a fine solution for a while. Cooper would nod off while Peter got in his reading for the day. Lately, however, Cooper won't go to sleep. He stays up two and three hours past his bedtime, all while Peter keeps asking if he can go to sleep yet. No one is sleeping enough and it's showing in daytime behavior.

Also, Bryan and I have discovered that we really need that quiet time at night. Our kids are constantly talking and moving, so by bedtime we're beat. I feel kind of guilty that we need time away from them, but watching the occasional movie on the couch or talking after they go to sleep are the only dates we get. And dates are important, aren't they?

Last night we told them that they would go to sleep in the same room, just at their slightly staggered bedtimes. Bryan talked about how we would need to be better at bedtime by the time Baby Sister arrived. He had the boys come up with their own consequences for when they got out of bed or started goofing off. We had high hopes.

It didn't work.

We reached the point when all of the consequences had been doled out, some repeatedly. Nothing. The boys were still not sleeping. Bryan finally had Cooper go to sleep in the playroom. At 10:30 both boys were asleep. For the record, Cooper's bedtime is 7:00 and Peter's is 7:30.

And so, unless we can find a miracle cure, I'm afraid the boys will be getting their own rooms soon. At least then if one of them stays awake, they won't have the other one a few feet away to bother.

Thanks goodness Phoebe sleeps at night.

Do any of you have any magical sleep suggestions? Short of drugging them?

Squishy

I've reached that stage of pregnancy where my feet and ankles swell to epic proportions. It happens every time and yet I'm always surprised. I've completely given up wearing anything other than slip-on shoes, though this might have more to do with my mid-section than my feet.

Over the Thanksgiving break I picked up a cold. My timing was perfect because Bryan decided to take that time off from work, so I actually got to recuperate by sleeping and staying in bed until noon on Friday. It felt like a real break, which I think we all needed. I'm still not well, but at least I'm well rested.

It was thanks to this extra sleep that I discovered the trick to getting rid of my swollen ankles. All I need to do is sleep for ten consecutive hours and my feet and ankles return to their normal size. If only I could figure out how to accomplish this every night...