New shelves for all those books

Books are really important in our family.  I guess that's what's happens when your mom is your school librarian.  I used to spend time each day after school helping my mom in the library.  Up until my mom was hired, I didn't care much for reading (mostly I resisted learning how).  But eventually the books in that library got the better of me, and from that point on I just haven't felt complete without a book in my life. :)  I really want my kids to feel excited and passionate about reading.  Brynn came along and I began reading to her from day one (literally) at our house.  She loved loved loved books and I thought I was such a good mom.  Well, that's not allowed, right?  So then Bryce came along and I did the same thing with him.  Whenever I read to Brynn I'd just get him up on my lap, too.  Different results - he didn't care about books or reading for the first couple of years.  He'd fight and squirm and couldn't wait to get away from the book.  Then a while ago he finally settled down enough to give them a try, then enjoyed them, then (hallelujah!!!) started bringing me books and asking me to read to him.  I was excited, and relieved, honestly.  Then recently, BOTH of the kids' interest has declined.  I'd pull out a book for them and offer to read it, and then feel SO DEFLATED when they'd say, "Nah." 

Enter the rain gutter book shelves (cheap white rain gutters from Home Depot).  They are all over the web right now, so I'm not clever at all.  But so far, these shelves have done the trick.  It doesn't hold a ton of books, but the ones that are in it are so much more visible and right at their level.  So they'll see a favorite book they had forgotten about and ask me (can I get another hallelujah??!!) to read it with them.

I think one problem was that we had too many books.  I brought a lot of mine with me from when I was little, my mom gives the kids a new book pretty much every time she sees them, plus we get some of her discards.  But I didn't want to get rid of any because I'm very sentimental about books, and I want our house to be like a library.  So, I organized our books (one of the VERY FEW times I've actually had fun organizing anything - organizing is not my thing).  The bottom shelf of books I get to pick out (right now they are all our counting books) and the kids get to pick a stack to put on the top shelf.   This time they decided to go by themes too, and Brynn picked all the "feelings" books and Bryce picked all the "diggers and dumpers" books.  There's still another book shelf in their room they can pick books off of, but usually when they want to read something, it comes from this one.

I didn't mean for this post to be so long, but since Marty is happily enjoying the march madness BYU game, here I go. 

Side note 1)  One guess on which category of book was our biggest one after organizing them (cue the Jeopardy music)....yep.  Princess books.

Side note 2)  Marty and I get a big kick out of the sign hanging on Brynn's doorknob (you can just see it on the first picture).  It says something like, "Shh, Princess sleeping inside" on one side and "The princess will see you now" on the other side.  Brynn's had it since her birthday in December and I don't think she's ever missed a single night or morning of turning that thing to the right side.  Funny how OCD five year olds can be about certain rituals. 

Side note 3)  Best book ever:  "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons."  Brynn's not totally there yet, but getting close.  She can read most of an easy book like "Hop on Pop."  Although right now we are SO into...

Side note 4)  Elephant and Piggie books by Mo Willems!!!  Thank you so much for the tip, Jana, they are so funny and the best beginning books ever!  Our personal favorite:

We laughed our heads off in this one and now will randomly burst out, "Banana!"  It's so fun that Brynn is old enough that we can share inside jokes with each other!

Ok, so reading we are doing ok on.  So far my kids seem to love music.  Now on to getting Brynn to run (or do anything even remotely athletic).  But that's a topic for another post....



I figured it out

Sweet Baby Gabe is already sleeping through the night.  I've been doing quite a bit of sleep training with him since he was just a few weeks old and I've been more consistent about it than with my other two, so I'd been hoping for this, but not knowing what to really expect.  The real mystery to me was the timing he had chosen to begin sleeping through the night.  In Utah, he slept in my room (which he hasn't done since he was two weeks old) and he thought it would be really funny to want to eat at least every two hours at night.  By the last night there I think we were up together more than we weren't.  Then our first night back in Arizona I was expecting him to remain spoiled, but he slept through the night.  I figured he was probably just tired from the big trip home.  But now it's been over a week and he's slept through the night all but once.  He's even been sleeping later than I've ever had a baby sleep (or toddler or child, for that matter).  So a couple of mornings ago I started getting nervous around 7:30 so I crept in his room to check on him.  Now I understand the strange timing he had for sleeping through the night.  In Utah he discovered his hands.  Apparently he's also discovered his THUMB!!  My mom always said thumb-suckers are good babies.  Now I can agree with her. :)

And here he is in the Bumbo chair.  Thanks, Great Grandma!  (Anyone else think his hair is going to be FLAMING red?)

This was totally Bryce's idea.  I hope these two brothers can have many many more days up in the loft playing trains (or whatever) together.

*yawn*

"My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys"

My Grandpa Peterson passed away on February 24.  As much as I am happy to know that he is finally out of pain, comfortable, and at peace, I will also miss him like crazy.  My mom called on that Friday to tell me that he was slipping away.  I packed in an hour, hoping to head out around 4:00ish the next morning and make it in time for him to meet Gabe and to hold his hand one last time (he used to hold my hand in both of his and never let go until I did).  Sadly we didn't make it in time, but again, I'm so glad he didn't have to suffer through another night and it was very peaceful.  So grandpa, here's to summers together in Boulder, horseshoes and shovels, whittling marshmallow sticks, popsicles on a hot summer's day, and some good old fashioned country music.

Bert Darwin Peterson

"Gone to Boulder"


Bert Darwin " Dar" Peterson, Beloved husband, father, grandpa, great-grandpa, brother, uncle and friend passed away peacefully with his family by his side February 24, 2012 in Spanish Fork, UT.

Darwin was born June 15, 1925 to Bertrand and Rosa Goulding Peterson in Boulder, UT, where he worked on the family ranch from a very young age. He grew up working on horseback in the high desert country that he loved.

He served proudly as a Marine Medic during World War II. He was on the first wave of Marines to invade Okinawa and fought in operation Iceberg.

Dar married his eternal sweetheart, Flora Robison, on July 5, 1949 in Salt Lake City. In 1955 they left Boulder and moved to Salt Lake City to raise their family. He was the best father ever to his son and two daughters.

Darwin was a man of integrity with a strong sense of right and wrong, and was a faithful member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was good-humored, affable, and always made people feel welcome and at ease. Some of his happiest times were spent returning to Boulder with his family. Dar was a special uncle to many nieces and nephews whom he dearly loved. He and Flora enjoyed camping with dear friends Norris and Barbara Lewis. He was excellent at whittling, could fix anything, and loved his country music.

He is survived by his wife Flora; daughter Debra Oldham (Allan); son Rod (Linda); daughter Michelle Sparks (David); grandchildren Corey, Justin (Helen), Emily (Marty), Dylan, Damon, Carter, Mikayle, Nicholas, Madison, Gabrielle; great-grandchildren Brynn, Bryce, Gabe; brother Garth (Lois).

Funeral services will be held Saturday, March 3 at 11:00 a.m. in Spanish Fork at the Aspen Meadows LDS Chapel, 1660 S. 1400 E. Friends may call Saturday morning at 9:30 a.m. Interment will be in Boulder Cemetery. To send the family a condolence visit www.LegacyFunerals.com

His family extends its deepest gratitude to neighbors Bud and Sandy Bittle for their kindness and support; everyone at Hearthstone Manor for their gentle care, compassion and love; and Marlene Oaks who far exceeded her duties as hospice nurse.



A Cowboy's burial

It was a beautiful funeral service and graveside service.  As I looked around the immense natural beauty around us, I felt so good about bringing him here.  He was always so at one with his beloved Boulder land, it just felt like we were bringing him home.  My brothers and I played and sang a song, "Hard Times Come Again No More," that seemed very fitting for this man who had suffered so much, and would now be resting in such a peaceful place.  By the way, that's Brynn in the background with the black and pink cowgirl hat, given to her by Aunt Helen and Uncle Justin.  Since then she's been VERY into being a cowgirl.  I'm happy about that.  After all, "My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys."


Memories of Grandpa:

*I went with him to see the Olympic torch pass.  It was a freezing cold day and it was snowing.  That day I was glad he was so affectionate.  He kept me warm with his arm around me.

*Dylan, Damon and I made a little “Happy Anniversary” program one year for Grandma and Grandpa.  I don’t remember exactly what we did, but we practiced hard and set up chairs for them when we were ready to perform it for them.  I do remember at the end we fell into the kiddie pool behind us and thought it was hilarious.  They clapped and clapped and told us how much they loved it.  Since then I have always remembered their anniversary was the 5^th of July.

*On that same trip to Boulder, a stray dog followed us home.  We tried to lose it a couple of times, but it always followed us back to the house.  Then one day we lost him somewhere around Pole’s Place.  Grandpa bet us each a quarter the dog would come find us again before we left.  Days later as we were packing the car to leave, we told Grandpa to pay up.  Then JUST as we were pulling out, there came that mutt happily trotting back.  We tried to give the quarters back to Grandpa, but he wouldn’t take them.  It became a little game on the way home – we’d hide them somewhere for him and he’d always find them and give them back.  I remember I didn’t want to spend that quarter.

*He’d always say, “You’re a beautiful girl, don’t let anyone ever tell you that you’re not.”  You know, when you hear something enough times you start to believe it.  Which is a pretty big achievement for an insecure middle-schooler with a pop-belly and headgear.  Years later, I was being interviewed for a pageant and someone asked me, “Do you think you’re beautiful?”  I told them about my grandpa and his constant reminders to me that I was beautiful.  And I told them that it was because of him that I thought I could answer “yes” to that question.  The interview was recorded, and one day when he was at my house, we played it for him.  It was after his hearing had long gone and I wondered if he’d actually heard it.  But when I looked over at him and saw tears streaming down his face, I knew that he had.  Even still, I’m sure he had no idea how important his constant reminders were to me.  He sure had a way of making each grand-kid feel special.

*He was so proud of me.  I was so embarrassed when he’d pull out a picture of me from his wallet and show it to people right in front of me.  I loved making him proud.  He had a distinct smile he’d use when he talked about his grand-kids.  When I was in college, I was privileged to be able to go to the World War II memorial in Washington DC with him.  My favorite part about that was having the tables turn and being able to show him off to perfect strangers rather than the other way around.  The Sparks girls and I absolutely mauled him.  We all took turns holding his hands.  I swelled with pride whenever someone came up and thanked him for his service to his country or asked to shake his hand.  From then on, I haven’t been able to contain my pride whenever I tell someone about him.

***Miss you, Grandpa***

3 months

 Well, Gabe is growing like a weed.  He is out of most of his 0-3 month clothes and is already wearing some 6-9 months outfits and jammies.  He has discovered his hands and if you really work at it (usually pat-a-cake does the trick) you can get a giggle out of him.  Here is his first big-kid bath.  He loved it of course, but I would expect nothing less from this baby.  He is still so mellow and sweet.

It was hard to get a picture of him, and hard to get to him with the soap because of....

these two.  They are still infatuated with the baby.  Mostly it's adorable, but they can get a little too helpful.  Here is a picture of Brynn washing his tummy, and Gabe looks a little unsure of the whole thing. He's too used to his sister to fuss.  He just shoots me this look and I understand he's had just about enough.

Christmas 2011

Here are the new Christmas Sunday clothes.  Bryce is holding his "Kno-knock."  No idea where that name came from, but it's what he's been calling guitars for forever. Anyway, my dad, the guitar nut who has a whole room dedicated to his guitars, thought it was high time Bryce had his own.  So that was Bryce's Christmas present from the grand-parents.  His first ukulele.  It's actually a pretty nice instrument.  At first I thought I'd get it down for him when he asked for it and just let him play around with it.  But now I take it down when Brynn practices piano and I teach him how to hold it, and he can actually play a few chords!  He loves it!

A little home-made Christmas gift for Brynn.  It's a sensory box full of mermaids, buried treasure, and the best part - Boulder sand!! Boulder is a tiny town in Southern Utah where my Grandpa owns some land and we spent  time every summer.  It's the softest sand in the world and since I've only been there a couple times since I've been married I get homesick for it.  I've had fun playing with this toy with Brynn.

And an ocean-themed sensory box for Bryce.  Not quite so much of a hit - sorry, Buddy. :)

 But the real present is behind the wrapped windows and doors...

 wait for iiiiiit..........

 Ta-dum!  We got a screeeeamin' deal on this playset on Craig's list.  And thank you to Marty, who put in an exorbitant amount of time on it, sanding, staining, other repairs.  Plus re-landscaping the lawn so we'd have a place for it.  And I might add, this is all in the last week or two of the pregnancy and the first couple of weeks of the baby.  Got it kids?  We must love you.

 Even sweet baby Gabe got to try it out.

 We had picnics for lunch out on the picnic table for weeks.  We still do multiple times a week.

 He already loves his sister. She treats him like gold, and in return he responds so well to her presence and her voice.

 Sigh.  I love this picture.  I know it's not great photography, but it's my sweet little cherub.  Looking, again, SO much like his brother and sister.  Wait a minute...didn't I already raise this baby a couple of times?  All my babies look alike.

This is where he spent most of Christmas, in Grandma's arms.

Chandler Train Museum

We recently discovered the Chandler Train Museum.  It was basically the thrill of the life time for our little ferroequinologist.  It's funny how much two-year-old can pick up on.  He was pointing out the caboose, freight car, coal car, boiler, engine, electric train...and a bunch of other things I can't remember off the top of my head.  It was pretty adorable.


Rockin the mai thai.  I have hardly used it this time around because Gabe is so ok with being put down when I need to get something done (as opposed to Bryce, who lived in this thing)/

These are a bunch of cars you can walk through on the Santa Fe train.  The picture right below me is hard to even look at.  It was this long, skinny hallway and I got about ten steps down the hall and starting having a panic attack.  I seriously started shoving Marty and the kids backwards saying "I gotta get outta heeere!"  Yep, claustrophobia.  Don't worry, it only took me two more tries to take a deep breath and venture in. :)

"What'll it be, little lady?

Dead to the world.  Which I am just fine with considering what a germophobe I've been having a newborn in the winter.  I liked having him nestled safely inside without ever even having to touch him. :)

My angel.  Have I ever mentioned how much I love having a little girl?  One of my favorite movies is "White Christmas," an old Bing Crosby musical from the fifties.  Well, during quiet time one day in December I popped some popcorn and we watched it together, thinking she'd get pretty bored.  But she loved it!  She asked me several times, "Hey, can we watch your favorite Christmas movie again today?"  Which made me so happy.  We would ooh and ahh over the pretty dresses and she wanted to sing "Sisters" together all the time.  ANYWAY, she sat down, pointed at this picture, and said, "Hey!  This is just like the "Snow" song from your favorite Christmas movie!"  And it does look just like the club car on White Christmas.  So we sat down and started singing it together.  It was pretty fun. :)

Here he driving the train: "All a-BOARRRRD.........the Polar Eckpress!"

Marty caught me lovin' on Baby.  Which isn't hard to do, I suppose, considering it's what I do with most of my time these days.

Up on the freight car:  "Ok Dad, I'll be Rapunzel, and Bryce will be Flynn, and you'll be Mover Goffel and climb up my hair!"

This was a cooool train....

We actually got to ring the bell...

Let me explain this picture:  The museum is only open from 12-4.  You got it - right during nap time.

If you've ever seem Thomas's Misty Island Rescue, you'll understand why Bryce was so exited to see the jobi logs.  He's usually using pencils or something as jobi wood and putting them down on his toy train tracks to block the tracks.  Thank heavens for tractor, who always comes to the rescue!

A gooooood afternoon.