Seize the Day

One of the many simple reasons why we all LOVE home-schooling...

For the past 2 years, the weeks before and after Spring Break were sunny and in the 60s and 70s while the week OF Spring Break was primarily snowy and in the 30s and 40s...Crazy Chicago Weather!!

Recent (and not so recent) Happenings

Now that the taste of fresh wheat bread has worn off a bit...(kind of like how I can't stand bologna sandwiches even now because I had to eat them in EVERY single lunch in 2nd grade...no offense mom, I completely understand now!) (and for the record...it's not the fresh wheat bread that isn't devoured, it's the second and third day bread that sits for a week on the kitchen counter that isn't quite as tempting anymore. And since I haven't worked daily wheat bread into the schedule (and never will), we've cut back to bi-monthly wheat bread-making)...I have a few extra minutes to post some updates!

Cienna finally decided she likes Cheerios...sort of (she's in 5th place among her siblings for this milestone...but who keeps track of milestones anyways?!). After eating a few bites, and spilling of course, her cute, little 18-month-old brain tells her cute, little 18-month-old mouth to yell, "Wag! Wag!" (i.e. rag), and she spends the rest of breakfast cleaning her tray, spoon, face and lap.

Brent brought two princesses to the Ball this year. They had a great time dancing into the night.

The local second graders put on a great show about kids who love Saturday...a day off to relax. Diggy auditioned and was chosen to sing a solo about a boy who hates taking piano lessons. And for a boy who doesn't even have the word "hate" in his vocabulary...he was wonderful! He really had a great time rehearsing and is still singing and dancing to all the songs at home, especially when it's time to clean-up...

"This day was supposed to be MY day. Why, then, am I doing the chores?

Spoil it, by scrubbing the toilet, cleaning a bath tub, or mopping the floor!"

I must admit I find myself humming right along with the kids.

Kenny turned 9! We had a great time bowling...

And tap-dancing in the fancy shoes, of course.

Cienna discovered that she LOVES snow. And anytime we went outside to get in the car, her cute, little 18-month-old brain insisted on having her cute, little 18-month-old feet walk through the snow for longer than any of the older brains in the family could handle, so we had to rotate turns getting excited about having our feet sink down in the snow next to hers.

She was sad to see the snow melt and kept going to the window, repeating, "No?" (which when said with a pleasant connotation as opposed to screaming, means 'snow').

And then...Cienna discovered that the glorious thing about having snow melt is that MUD appears. And for a cute, little 18-month-old girl who LOVES to eat dirt, she was once again in heaven!

(This is an experimenting face...not a sad face.)

And I discovered, once again, why I LOVE our drawer-full of hand-me-down/Wal-mart sale-rack clothes.

From Our Hearts to Yours…

Here’s to a wonderful 2009!

Brent’s adventures in 2009 have included another week at Scout Camp, business trips to Singapore and China (where he tasted 100-yr.-old eggs and climbed the Great Wall), and the excitement of coming home to 5 kids who bombard him with joy every day when he walks in the door.

Amy LOVES her role as wife, mother, and chief educator of her children more every day (okay..maybe not every day, but measured over time, the average is definitely going up). In 2009, one of the only years of married life that haven’t included moving or having a baby/foster children, she’s used her spare time to add homemade wheat bread to the weekly routine.

Harry, I mean Kenny, (8 ) is progressing very rapidly in school, loves attending Cub Scouts, and is a budding musician, talented artist, and successful business partner (The Smith Brothers’ [Recycle] Bucket Service…their customers even gave Christmas tips!). He spends his spare time reading, drawing, building robots and enjoying his siblings.

Diggy (7) excels in out-of-the-box thinking, loyalty, peace-making, efficiency, money management and preparedness. He designed a 1-hr. kit as a back-up for his 72-hr. kit. His many creative, useful projects are strategically placed throughout the house (including the freezer).

Kirsti (5) is a great reader and enjoys seeing what “school” is like in her half-day kindergarten class. She loves learning to play the piano and the violin. Kirsti grinds wheat for mom, plays dolls with her sisters, and has a fabulous English accent whenever it’s time to be Hermione.

Allison (2) has mastered the transition from observer to active participant in all the Smith Family Pretending Games. Her great memory helps her name all of the alphabet letters, rattle off the day’s happenings to dad, sing lots of songs, and repeat all of her older siblings’ phrases like “I promise I will” and “But I don’t feel like cleaning” complete with proper voice inflection and body drama at all the appropriate moments.

While Cienna (15 mos.) is the only one in the family who truly would have loved coal in her stocking (she still searches the fireplace for snacks, which caused us to guard it with the baby gate, which caused a huge raucous about how Santa was going to make it safely inside the house, which caused lots of secret grins from his elves (aka Kenny) who know his tricky ways, etc., etc.), she is an angel who carefully observes and mimics her peculiar siblings (even with words like, "Why"), runs to her mother for refuge (very often), chatters with her “Dada” on the phone (with lots of jibberish and some real words already!), and still loves her beans and vegetables (more than cookies and candy).

May 2010 be full of more happy (and even some character-stretching) adventures for us all!

A Hogwarts Halloween

Halloween is the perfect time of year for REAL wizards (along with Hedwig, the Owl) to mingle with the Muggles on Eastwood Drive and remain undetected. Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Hedwig paraded the neighborhood (and the Brookfield Zoo a week earlier) casting spells and collecting memories.

Mrs. Weasley (Grandma Van Camp) hand-crafted fine robes and hats for the young Hogwarts students prior to their adventures. And because Diagon Alley's prices on this year's supply list exceeded the students' allotted Galleons, they opted to create their own ties, wands, and Nimbus 2000s using Dumbledore's secret supplies.

Mr. Weasley (Grandpa Van Camp) accompanied the group up and down endless streets on the chilly night, using his superior knowledge and keen observation of Muggles to strategically skip houses and maximize their time and energy. (Unfortunately, Harry had left the Marauder's Map in his trunk back at Gryffindor Tower.) Hermione's time-turner did help a little by adding an extra hour to the evening.

Hedwig happily fluttered around, but was grateful to shed some of her feathers as soon as possible.

While at the zoo, the wizards even had time to study up for their Magical Herbs Class.

And rescue their mascot from the Slytherin Serpent.

Professor Sprout even allowed them to carve faces into their final projects (as long as they helped clean up the Great Hall afterwards).

Happy Halloween!

Happy 1st Birthday Cienna!

The house is full of extra energy (more giggles, frequent jumps for joy, tons of hugs, and lots of love) on birthday days. Spontaneous bursts of "Happy Birthday Dear Cienna..." could be heard regularly throughout the day. Cienna felt overly smothered on several occasions, but endured it well.

It's hard to believe our little one is now one. Kirsten said several times today, "Is Cienna REALLY 1?" And then she proceeded to list all the reasons why it seemed impossible..."She doesn't have any hair. She only says a few words. She still drinks Mommy's milk. She still crawls alot. Her onesies still fit. She's the same as when she was zero." I, for one, am grateful that our little baby didn't turn into a woman overnight. :)

Apparently, Cienna's sweet tooth hasn't matured quite yet, either (or maybe she's trying to set a good example for her family). She pushed the beaters from her cupcake batter away and begged for green beans. She loves the bland taste of rocks, wood chips, and dirt. And we frequently have to pull crayon bits and the erasers from the tops of pencils out of her mouth.

Cienna received the typical 1st cupcake with frosting and sprinkles as part of her birthday celebration...but wanted nothing to do with it. She didn't taste it, play with the frosting, or even come close to succombing to the temptation to eat a sprinkle. She also rejected her 1st Orange Julius (a Smith Family birthday treat)...she did have 4 siblings who were happy to share her portion though.

BUT, Cienna LOVES pizza. And she happily ate almost an entire adult slice all on her own.

Happy Birthday Cienna! You bring such true joy into the hearts of your parents, your brothers, your sisters, and all who know you!!

Utah Trip 2009

We recently returned from a great vacation out to Utah.

The moving walkways...

having your own personal tray that opens and shuts with the simple flip of a switch...

and finally being able to eat the "suckers for the air-pane ride"

probably would have been vacation enough for 5 excited kids (and their parents).

But we did some other fun things, too...

We visited with Brent's family and over half of his nearly 50 Smith cousins at 2 different wedding receptions.

The kids got bench-pressed by Uncle Kevin.

We built the Great Human Pyramids.

We hung out with old high school buddies and the next generation of high school buddies.

We hiked up Y Mountain (a family tradition when visiting Utah) with Amy's old BYU roomates.

Brent got a sore foot on the trip...we think this might of had something to do with it. (It's a very steep hike...apparently too steep for our 2-year-old to handle physically and emotionally alone!)

The girls wore purple nightgowns with Nana.

We had Cousin Camp 2009 (actually 2nd Cousin Camp) with Joel and Karen's kids. They have 2 girls and 3 boys for us to match up with. The pairing up was fun to watch.

We climbed waterfalls,

and canoed Utah Lake.

The highlight of my trip was watching our 3 oldest bravely take the canoe out alone...on their first day of ever holding a paddle.

It's very satisfying watching your children accomplish new things...but it's also lonely to stand and watch them go into unchartered waters without you. I wish I could've been a fly on a life-jacket, listening to their chatter as they navigated through the reeds.

But I had this cute, smiley face to enjoy on shore! Allison loved being in a life-jacket.

We visited Temple Square.

We played for 4 days with Cousin Kylie, which turned into another Cousin Camp!

We carved initials into Uncle Brian's lawn.

And we took LOTS of pictures to carry these priceless memories long into the future.

Thank you to all the Friends and Family who helped make this trip GREAT!

Ten Years with an Amazing Man!

Brent and I are celebrating 10 years of marriage today.

Here is a tribute to the man I love…

The only challenge in being married to someone as wonderful as Brent is coming up with words to describe just how wonderful he is. Whenever I stop to think about the man the Lord led me to 10 years ago, I literally feel speechless...and grateful.

I’ve been stopped many times in the last ten years, often by friends and family and just as often by random people who feel this same sense of speechlessness after interacting with Brent even just one time. They usually say something like, “You are so lucky to be married to someone like Brent,” or “My kids LOVE your husband,” or “If anyone can do it, Brent can do it” or “There’s something about your husband’s voice,” or even “I wish I could find someone just like Brent.” I can sense their lack of knowing how to phrase my husband’s near-perfect aura. I usually struggle to know how to respond. But I do know exactly how they feel.

Brent is compassionate. The first thing I noticed and fell in love with about Brent is how he genuinely loves everyone. I quickly learned that his biggest hobby is helping people. If Brent has spare time, he finds great joy in seeking out those in need and finding ways to fill voids in their lives. (The kids and I have been the lucky recipients of much of his spare time for ten years…but I’m well aware of the principle “where much is given, much is required,” so we try hard to share him with the world whenever possible.) Brent is comfortable giving his time to infants, children, teenagers, adults, elderly, the sick, the poor, and the homeless.

Brent is a man of action. I also learned quickly that while Brent is very patient, he also knows when to act and what to do. He knew he wanted to marry me before we started dating, so he quickly asked me on a date to get things rolling. My roommates remember his bold and confident way of starting relationship chats without necessarily waiting for them to leave the room so we could be alone. We were married just 6 months after we met, and if I’d known then the happiness we’d share during the last 10 years, I would have understood Brent’s vision and urgency.

On one of the first nights in our first apartment, I randomly commented that the garbage can didn’t fit under the sink. I was surprised then (but wouldn’t be now) to see Brent dig out his razor blade and cut off the top of the can to make it fit “just how my sweet wife wants.” That garbage can has now fit under the kitchen sinks in five states. I don’t think I can ever part with it. It’s timeliness in our marriage makes it one of the first tangible symbols of my husband’s willingness to serve me.

When we were first married, I heard all the stories about husbands who leave the toilet seat up, make a mess of the toothpaste, and leave their socks lying around. It didn’t take long for me to realize my husband was different. He not only closes the lid, but he wipes it down when necessary. He purchased a toilet brush before we were married in prep for cleaning the inside of “our” new toilet. Isn’t that thoughtful? Brent not only has toothpaste tube cleanliness mastered, I frequently find my toothbrush lathered up and ready to go if he beats me to the bathroom in the evening. And he not only puts dirty socks in the right spot, he also does dishes, changes diapers, and actually makes the bed (instead of just pulling the sheets up like I do). He tells stories to the kids at the dinner table, wrestles with them on the living room floor, and sings to them in their beds at night. Brent’s hobby is helping…and he does it so tenderly and with complete humility.

Just a couple of weeks ago, a friend called to let me know Brent would be home a little later from a meeting they had just attended together because he had seen Brent’s car pulled over on the side of the road helping a lady with a tire-change. He was in a suit and had 3 of our kids in the car with him. But if he can help, he always will.

Brent manages his time so well. I think if my kids had a father who came home and quickly shoved them away to wind down, they would stop competitively yelling out the day’s accomplishments the minute he walked in the door. The high volume and excitement levels of our children during the hours that Dad is around speak loudly for the type of unselfish magnet my husband allows himself to be. When Brent comes home, his mind and his heart are home, too.

Brent is a hard worker. The way Brent plays with the kids before bedtime, one would think he has nothing else to do. But after dinner and bedtime routines, he’s willing to stay up into the night to continue work or unfinished projects. Brent also enjoys remodeling and has the kids (and sometimes Mom) thinking that pulling up an old floor, laying a new roof, or painting a room is one big fun family activity.

Brent loves so completely. I am a better person now than I was 10 years ago. Some of the things I’ve improved on over the years are weaknesses Brent pretends never existed. He looks past flaws and with open arms lends a shoulder to cry on, or hands to serve with. Anyone can feel safe with Brent. In all the years we’ve been married, I’ve never heard him say a negative thing about anyone…and that’s the honest truth.

Brent is a Christian. Hands down, the biggest blessing in being married to someone as wonderful as Brent is how well he helps me feel the love of our Savior Jesus Christ. He exemplifies the Savior in so many ways. I get to see every day a small glimpse of the kind of love, mercy, and sacrifice Jesus has for me and my children. My testimony of Jesus Christ has grown so dramatically thanks to my amazing man.

And together, our greatest hope and joy is to serve our Savior all of our days.

Cheers to the years ahead and on into eternity!