Therapy

Today is officially the last day of Kanyon's at-home therapy. He turns 3 tomorrow, which means his therapy services will no longer be provided by the Child Development Center. The CDC works with infants and toddlers until age 3, when they are then evaluated and can become eligible to attend the Pioneer Preschool and receive their services instead.

For 2 years now, Kanyon has had multiple therapists who make weekly visits to our home. He had a SLT (Speech/Language therapist) until she moved away this past summer, he has a Developmental Therapist Amy, and he has an OT (Occupational therapist) Gayle. He loves his therapist friends, and always looks forward to their visits so he can play with them. They have been wonderful, and we've enjoyed having them in our home! Kanyon will miss seeing Gayle and Amy every week! His speech as well as his behaviors have improved dramatically since the therapists' interventions began.

Kanyon is too advanced in his motor skills and his speech is now considered normal for his age, but he still qualifies to go to the preschool due to his head-banging behaviors, his high sensory sensitivity, and his auditory and tactile processing. He will go two mornings a week until the end of the school year.

We are excited for him to go because we know what to expect; all 3 of the older boys went to the same preschool--Ammon because of his poor speech and Jonah & Micah because of their developmental delays. I know the teachers, I'm familiar with the daily schedule, and I am sure that the limited number of children in the class coupled with the positive learning environment will benefit him, just as it did his older brothers. I'm so grateful for these excellent programs that have helped my sons. I'm thankful for the awesome people who have professions that help others who need it, like my own children, and who are influential in their progression.

These photos are of his OT Gayle doing a tactile session with him. He hates having his hands be messy and touching strange textures, so she brought chocolate pudding for him to play in. The photos are evidence that he wasn't too fond of it at first, but by the end he loved it! Doesn't it look like so much fun?!

Who Dat?

Dat Dem Saints...

Goin' to the Superbowl!!!

For as long as I've known Josh, the Saints have been his football team. He loves their underdog spirit, he roots for their players, he sports their fleur de lis logo, and he wears their black & gold colors. He's a Saints Man!!!

When we went to New Orleans last year, we HAD to go see the Saints stadium, the SuperDome. The NFL season had recently ended, and unfortunately, the stadium's store had just closed for the day only 30 minutes before we got there, so we didn't have a chance to go inside. But in seeing the SuperDome, we crossed off his one item on the list of "things to do in New Orleans" and we took photos to remember it by.

He was SO excited when the Saints beat the Vikings 2 weeks ago! At the end of the 4th quarter, when Brett Favre threw an interception insuring that the Saints would pull the victory after a really close game, Josh was jumping up and down so hard that he hurt his foot! He was that ecstatic!!

This is the first time the Saints have ever been to a Superbowl. Drew Brees is going to take them all the way! Go SAINTS!!! We pick you as the 2010 Superbowl winner against Peyton Manning and the Colts!!!

Good Intentions

I had every intention of making me a tall and handsome snowman.
But the snow didn't cooperate.
So my plans changed.
Instead, he became a short and plump penguin-man.I take what I can get...and I think he even turned out kinda cute!

Laws of Attraction?

at⋅tract 
–verb
1.
to draw by a physical force causing or tending to cause to approach, adhere, or unite.
2.
to draw by appealing to the emotions or senses, by stimulating interest, or by exciting admiration.

From this definition, I understand and believe there are two types of attraction: physical and emotional.

From the first moment I saw my husband, I was physically attracted to him. Something inside of me ignited. Even now, over 12 years later, when I sometimes see him unexpectedly, my heart skips a beat. I desire to be near him, and when I am around him, my senses are awakened. Because my physical attraction for him is so deep, I am very emotionally attracted to him as well.

But I am also emotionally attracted to many others, regardless of their gender or race or religion. I think of it as an attraction of minds. I yearn to spend time with certain people because I feel mentally stimulated by them, because I feel understood in their presence, because I feel better about myself around them, and sometimes it's because I just enjoy being with them for no particular reason.

In the physical attraction sense, people say they are attracted to eyes, or butts, or smiles, or legs. But with emotional attraction, it's more about being attracted to someone's personality.

For me, I do not become truly physically attracted to someone unless I am emotionally attracted to them first (except of course for my "love at first sight" attraction to Josh). I can see people on TV or on the street and think "they're good-looking", but physically I feel nothing towards them. But after getting to know someone and becoming emotionally attracted to them, I start seeing the person as more beautiful, and I can become physically attracted to them. This has been rare, but unfortunately has still occurred.

I have given this a LOT of thought. The attractions I feel for others is something I cannot control, but acting upon the physical attractions is something I can. I can't always control my thoughts or feelings, but I can control my impulses and actions. And since I like to feel in control, I choose the latter. But even if I don't act on them, if I acknowledge my physical attraction for another in just my thoughts, is it still wrong?

Sometimes when I think about things too much in my head, I start becoming non-sensical. I'm wondering if any of you readers understand this whole attraction thing that I'm talking about? And if so, what are your thoughts on the subject?

Welcoming February

with...

new blog background

new blog music

new attitude

and

lots of love

Today is the Last Day of January

This January has not been an easy month for me.
The last several weeks have been filled with many changes.
All good ones, but hard for me nonetheless.

Josh and I accepted my mom's challenge of reading the "Total Money Makeover" by Dave Ramsey. We have implemented his money strategies: we have established an emergency savings, we cut up the credit cards, we have written a monthly budget, and we have a one-year, debt-free plan in place (except for the new house payment). It's already been difficult to stick to the plan, but with two credit cards paid off now, it has been rewarding.

Josh and I joined the "We are Fit" challenge put on by our ward Relief Society. We both want to be in better shape, lose weight, and feel better about ourselves. We have been drinking more water, exercising, and watching what we eat. We've both lost 3 pounds in 3 weeks. That means only 33 more pounds for me to go, so at this rate, I'll reach my weight-loss goal by September! This challenge has also been difficult, but we are reaping its benefits.

My dad challenged his offspring to read the Book of Mormon this year. Josh, Ammon, and I have taken it on! I love reading it, and I remember how happy I felt when I read it constantly in high school--it's been that long since I read it all the way through. I'm grateful for the chance to read it along with my brothers and sisters and husband and son. I have difficulty reading it unless it's quiet because I want to focus and concentrate and process what it is that I'm reading. Waiting for a quiet time in this tiny house is difficult. The boys are up at 7am, playing the computer, and all day it's noisy, until about 11pm when Josh turns off the TV to sleep and I'm exhausted. I'm not as far as I'd like to be in the book, but I know that my efforts to press on in this wonderful endeavor will be worth it!

We have plans in place to purchase a home this spring--we have put our finances together to be able to afford what we desire and need the most, and have been approved from the mortgage company. We have been looking forward to this occasion for years, and are so excited! The hardest part about this right now for me is that for the last two years, we've used some of our tax refund money towards a couple's vacation. Two years ago, we went to England. Last year we went to New Orleans. This year we WERE going to go skiing in Park City with just a portion of the refund. But the entire refund we just received went towards credit card payoffs and home-purchase preparations. Which means we're NOT going. In the dreary month of January, I usually plan and look forward to the upcoming retreat in February. But not this year. No couple's retreat, no vacation to plan, nothing to lift me from the depressing days of January.

Change is hard. First I embraced it, but after two weeks, I began resisting it. Even though I know everything we are doing now physically, financially, and spiritually will be for a greater cause for us and our family, I've still been struggling mentally.

The truth is I've been depressed for weeks. And I'm tired of it.
Today is the last day of January, and it's time for my pity-party to end.

February starts tomorrow.
In February, I will see my niece be baptized.
I will get to visit my family alone.
I will go to the temple.
Valentine's Day will be celebrated.
We will be living our last month in this old house.
Happy times are on the horizon!!!

Dough Boy

My boys all love to eat cookie dough.

So much so, that they eat it by the gallon.

Literally.

and not a day too late!

For 15 days of the 17-day Christmas Break, we had no snow in Salmon. But thankfully, the Saturday before we returned to school, we finally got some!!! The boys were so ecstatic! We were glad that the snow arrived just in time for us to enjoy it, and not a day too late!

We took them up to Lover's Lookout (just a mile from our house) for two hours of sledding bliss!Gideon & Alyssa, and Grandpa T. came too! Grandpa brought the 4-wheeler, so he could pull sledders up the LONG hill after going down it! We had such a delightful time! We love spending quality time with family while basking in the beautiful white stuff that God blessed us with!

Josh likes to pave a trail in the giant tube

Gid & Lys going down together

Ammon is ready for a relaxing ride

Micah likes going alone

Jonah likes riding with others

Kanyon was brave enough to take this ride all by himself

I was the queen of the hill--my sled reached the furthest point at the bottom

Sledders linked like a choo-choo train

Racing to the bottom of the hill

what little boys are made of

I have 3 younger sisters.
I liked mothering my little sisters when I was in my youth.
I understood girls and I couldn't wait to be a mother when I grew up.
Now I am the mother of 4 sons.
And most days I have no idea how to raise boys!

Boys are so different from girls...
Girls are socially active, and use words to express their feelings.
Boys are physically active, and use agression to show their feelings.
Girls like to be pretty, and have nice-smelling things.
Boys hate to change their socks, and have stinky-smelling things.
Girls have lots of emotions.
Boys have lots of energy.

One of the areas that I have no expertise in is the usage of body part grammar with boys.
Boys love to talk about body parts and noisy bodily functions.
Constantly.
When they were little, I had no idea what I would call those parts.
If I used the correct terminology, I'd be hearing those words all day long.
Over and over and over.
That didn't seem like a good option.
But I also didn't want them growing up using cheesy nicknames for their body parts either.

Thankfully, the boys figured out what to call the body parts all by themselves.

"He kicked me in the tenders" Jonah said one day.
And it stuck.
Tenders for privates.
Sounds good to me.

One day, Micah pointed to a bathing Kanyon and said "He has nibbles like me!"
Nibbles for nipples.
I kind of like it.

So, Tenders and Nibbles it is.
Chicken pieces doubling as Body parts.

That's what my little boys are made of!

Monopoly

For his birthday in 2002, I gave Josh a Monopoly Golf. I knew how much he loved the board game, and when I found the "Golf" edition of it, I thought it was perfect for him! He loved it! But it was rarely played because I refuse to play it with him. He always wins Monopoly big-time, and I hate losing so badly over and over and over. Thankfully, when Ammon became old enough to understand the game, Josh found someone willing to play it over and over and over with him! And Ammon has gotten quite good at it, too, even beating his dad on a few occasions!

Now during every Christmas Break for the past 3 years, playing the Monopoly game has become a competition between Josh, Ammon, and Gideon. Ammon looks forward to it, and even played against himself a few times this year to practice for the competition! I think it's funny to watch the three guys play it together, all very serious and competitive, making the game last for hours! Alyssa decided to join in this year's competition, too...but I think she enjoyed it about as much as I did while playing against them, so I doubt she'll do it again!

Each year, at the end of the competition, the champion claims the cherished title of Monopoly King, reigning for a full year until the next Christmas Break!!!

January 2010 - Champion: Josh

January 2009 - Champion: Gideon

January 2008 - Champion: Josh

(sorry, no photo)