A Surprise For 2015. What the?

 

For those of you that still follow this blog I wanted to include you in our exciting announcement. Sometimes life comes with impossible surprises and we have received such a gift. The followers of this blog know that after my last surgery to fix my bladder and my uterus I was warned not to have any more children because of the hish risk involved. And to be honest, we weren't even sure it would be possible. But the Lord had a different plan for our family and we are so grateful.

Our best Family Home Evening ever! Scott Peterson
Posted by Erin Peterson on Friday, July 24, 2015

 

And our Gender Reveal was fun too.

We are so excited and blessed to be expecting a baby girl in January 2016.

God is so good and we are truly blessed and amazed by this incredible miracle he has performed.

Fiddle's for Republicans

The kids had the chance to play at a

Republican Fundraiser this week.

I can hardly believe how big they are getting.

As much as I am looking forward to the new school year,

I don't like thinking about them getting older.

I'm lucky to have such great kids.

 I love it that they are playing the violin like their dad.

There are a lot of battles fought over practice time,

intonation and lessons, but they always love performing.

And I get so much pleasure watching them share their talents.

 

 

 

 

30 Day and 90 Day Book Of Mormon Reading Schedules

The Book Of Mormon Forum Challenge is going on today over at BeingLDS:

Ever since I first challenged myself to read The Book Of Mormon in 30 Days I have had a deeper love for the scriptures and a stronger desire to love, serve and keep the commandments. When I Finished my 30 Day challenge I had a complete change of heart. I felt a deeper resolve to live the gospel than I had ever had before. I have had many people download my 30 Day Reading Schedule and I love it when they let me know that they have accepted the challenge. I have decided to include a 90 Day Reading Schedule here as well, so that everybody can find a reading plan that fits their schedule. 

Last night I had an experience with Kate. She had acted out in a behavior that really upset me. My first thought was that we needed to punish her. Really punish her. I even told Scott to go and give her a big spank. Luckily, Scott was more in line with Gospel teachings and insisted we wait and think about it. I was very disappointed in her, so much so that I was crying and really, really sad. I thought about how Enos father must have felt when he didn't think that Enos was grasping the principles of the gospel or trying to keep the commandments. I thought about how Alma must have felt when his son was running around trying to destroy the church and lead people astray. Both of these fathers must have mourned their son's mistakes and prayed mightily for them to feel the Saviors love, to make good choices, and to begin keeping the commandments.

As Scott and I knelt beside Kate's bed we looked into her 7 year old eyes. Suddenly I was much less concerned with her actual behavior, and much more concerned with helping her know and feel her Heavenly Father's love. Reminding her that she is a Daughter of God and that she has more value and worth than she will ever know. I went from almost ruining this sweet experience by spanking her in a moment of anger and rage, to feeling a love for her deeper than I have ever felt before. I sat and held her as she cried because of the sorrow she felt for the wrong she had done. And when I turned out the lights and tucked her into bed she told me she loved me and just how sorry she was. 

And I know that she is wonderful. 

What if I had missed out on that?

I am so grateful for The Book Of Mormon in my life. I'm grateful for prophets that feel like mentors and friends, for scriptures that sink deep into my soul, and for a husband that was able to help me stop for a moment and just think.

Here are two different reading schedules. I really hope you will let me know if you decide to use them. I love hearing about other peoples experiences with finishing The Book Of Mormon, whether it is for the first time or the 100th.

Just read it.

You can click on the picture, save it and print it or download a the jpeg {Here} 30 Day Reading Schedule

You can click on the picture, save it and print it or download the jpeg {Here} 90 Day Reading Schedule

The 30 day chart is available in a different color >>>> HERE.

And if you have a Book Of Mormon Experience that you would like to share...LINK UP!!! Jocelyn is having another great link-up Party over at BeingLDS. She has invited everyone to participate in her Book Of Mormon Forum.

What do you feed your kids?

What are the main foods that you feed your kids?

I feel uninspired in the kitchen.

My kids are so picky and so boring.

Cereal

Crackers

String Cheese

Marsh mellows

Yogurt

Peanut Butter

Cheese

Tortilla's

Applesauce

Junk Food

Seriously it get's hard working with such a small list.

The older kids are getting better about food, but Sawyer is killing me.

That list is about all he will eat. 

What do your kids love.

Help me out!

6 Year-Old Tears

Kate came home from School today in tears.

She threw open the door, walked into the house and chucked her backpack across the room.

The first words out of her mouth were,

"It's all your fault!"

I couldn't get any more information out of her for about 5 minutes. Kate gets really quiet when she is angry. She boils for what seems like hours until the tears seem to pop out of her face.

The tears break my heart.

And then I get frustrated and mad.

"Kate, I can't help you if you don't tell me what is wrong."

I finally decide to give her space and I leave the room.
5 minutes later I check on her.
I can't find her.
I look everywhere.
When I go to her room I find her under her covers crying.

Words don't really work with Kate. You have to give her space and time. She is stubborn but also sensitive. She has a hard time communicating her emotions.

I slip into her bed behind her and wrap my arms around her. It is all I can do to just keep my mouth shut. A few minutes pass and she turns into my hug. The tears are still coming.

"Kate, what happened?"

"They all made fun of me." She continued to tell me that some of the kids teased her about her leg-warmers. The kids were suppose to dress silly today, for Dr. Seuss. When I dropped her off at school there were plenty of other boys and girls dressed in mix-matching, funny clothes too. I didn't think that we had gone too extreme and I sort of thought that she was adorable.

I probably messed up the next part by telling her that the other kids were probably jealous of her, or hadn't seen leg-warmers before. I told her that the boys that teased her probably thought that she was cute, and the girls probably thought that she was pretty. I told her that there are lots of ways that kids tease other kids and the reason is never what you would think.

I then told her that there will  be people that come into her life that won't like her.

They won't like who she is, what she looks like, what she does, or what she stands for.

I told her that there will be nothing that she can do to change the way that these people may view her and that she shouldn't waste her sweet tears caring what they think about her. I told her to figure out who she wants to be and to be it.

And then I gave her an extra tight hug, looked into her eyes and told her that her family will always love her. I told her that we will always love who she is, what she looks like, what she does and what she stands for. We will be right here. I told her that her Heavenly Father also loves her more than she could possibly imagine. I told her that she is safe here at home, and that she can tell me anything that troubles her and I will try my best to help her. I told her that her true friends will always have her back, they will always love her and they will always be kind.

Kate, the world won't always love you. 

But I will. 

Only The Strong Survive

The past week has been a difficult one.
Like...really, really hard.

Shouldn't there be a rule that mom's and kids cannot be sick at the same time.

Me: Double Ear Infection, Double Ear-drum rupture, Pink Eye, Upper Respiratory/sinus infection, Cough.
Wyatt: Double Ear Infection, Pink Eye, Upper Respiratory/sinus infection, Cough.
Sawyer: Pink Eye, Upper Respiratory/sinus infection, Cough.
Dylan: Upper Respiratory/sinus infection, Cough.
Kate: Cough.

Scott: NOTHING. He is the Last Man Standing. (Lucky Husband with the Immune System of Steel)

Last week was suppose to be rocking.

Wyatt Turned 1.
Valentine's Day.
Dylan Turned 8.
Lance & Terry came to town.

I did my best, but I was SO miserable.

The babies and I are on Anti-biotics but we still feel terrible. The best I felt all week was after I took Mucinex-D last night. My friend Shawri talked me into it and it really did make me feel better. Not even drinking the bottle of NyQuil helped this girl. Bummer.

It is so hard trying to take care of a family when you are sick. BOOOO.  Not to mention I am pretty much deaf right now and can't hear a thing. Not the phone ring, not the baby cry, not the kids fighting. And I missed another week of Church which really stinks. I so needed it yesterday. Scott & Dylan were the only one's that made it.

The good new is that the world goes on and somehow we make it through and forget it all. And I'm thinking a little bit of Spring could do that for me right about now.

And...

I miss the gym. (Crazy)

Sunday Thoughts: Patience {Lack of}

Yesterday I sat down with Dylan to help him learn to tie his shoes. Yes, he is almost 8 and still hadn't quite captured the skill. At first I was very calm and reassuring, and with in a matter of minutes I found myself getting so frustrated with him. I was saying things like:

• Dylan it is so easy
• Are you even paying attention
• Look, right here. RIGHT HERE!!!
• OH, come on.
• AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

I'm pretty sure it was a very unpleasant experience for him. I made him do it over and over and over again.

It took him about 15 minutes and then he got it. Afterward, I found myself asking him, "Dylan, your mom has no patience. Am I mean?" He was so excited that he could tie his own shoes that he just kept saying, "Mom, I can tie my shoes, you aren't mean."

I find myself losing my temper a lot. I feel like I could  not love and adore my kids more than I do, but I still have such a hard time with not raising my voice and using a kind tone. I tend to boil over really silly and unimportant things.

I grew up with a Dad that never, ever in my whole life, EVER lost his temper with me. EVER. Did I mention EVER, EVER, EVER? I know. It is pretty rare. He is a very amazing man. A very patient man. And he was raised by a father that NEVER, EVER, EVER, EVER lost his temper with him. 

I was so blessed to be raised by such a kind, loving, patient man.

So, I'm pretty sure that I need to figure this temper thing out. And quick. Being a Mother is a sure test of patience. If I can't learn it now, I never will.

I think that when I am really thinking about it, and really making an effort, it is so much easier to stay calm and rational. My kids are so wonderful. They are smart, healthy, kind, tender and sensitive. I love them so much. They are helpful, and capable and I expect a lot out of them.


I've been thinking a lot today about what I can do to not get to the point of losing control and acting like a kid myself.


Do you have any suggestions? I would love for you to share some of the things that work for you. This is me, humbly asking for your help.

What helps you to be patient with your kids?

What works in your home to help keep harmony?

Do you ever feel like you are mean?

Do you ever lose your temper?

Did you have a parent that never lost their temper, Ever, Never, Ever?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And here are a few pictures of the kids before our church party.

And one picture of a tired boy after.

Sunday Thoughts

This morning seemed really rushed and really hectic. I lost my temper with a two year old, I didn't know what to wear, and I felt like I had too much to do, with too little time. I found myself feeling really guilty on the way to church and I kept thinking to myself that I really needed to apologize for being such a crazy mom. But I didn't apologize; I was too busy putting on my mascara.

It is funny how many times I must have thought to myself, why am I doing this? Sheesh, I want to sleep. Please tell me that I'm not the only one that starts their Sunday's like this sometimes. I felt nervous that we had to sing in church and that my lesson wasn't really "that" prepared. I kept wondering if Wyatt was going to have a blow-out right before we were suppose to sing as a family.

I find that Sunday's are like this a lot for me. I try really hard to pray, sing, feel the spirit, and enjoy the Sacrament, but as a mom with four kids I fall short 99.9% of the time. So I feel bad and that I must be doing something wrong, because every other mom has it perfectly together. And you guys do, right? I think we think this about each other because we tend to be so hard on ourselves. And sometimes we do ask "why am I doing this?"  And I think it is okay to ask. Because every time I think this to myself, I am comforted by the sweet assurance that comes from the Holy Ghost, whispering special promises that it will be alright, that I'm doing a good job, and that there is purpose in all of it. 

And maybe our reward doesn't come instantly. And maybe each Sunday isn't earth shattering. But every once in a while I'll get a glimpse of the reward that is waiting.

It is conversations like this that prove to me that our labors do matter. That the fight is worth it. And that we are raising the 'Army of Helaman' for today.

Dylan: Hey mom. Did Jesus get his cool powers after he died?

Me: Actually he had God's special power while he was living on the earth?

Dylan: Well then why didn't he stop the evil men from killing him? He could have stopped them right?

Me: Ya, bud. He could have stopped them.

Dylan: Well then why didn't he stop them mom?

Me: Why do you think he didn't stop them?

Dylan: So that we can live with him again. Because he loves us.

It is moments like this that things seem crystal clear.

And it is moments like this that my Rewards are evident.

Life seems to be rushing by. The kids are growing so quickly, and before I know it, I will be sitting alone, next to Scott in Sacrament meeting, trying to borrow other people's children.

Dirty...

Sometimes I clean my kids...

And they are really clean...and they smell so good...and they feel so soft...

And it lasts for about 15 minutes.

Credit Card Fraud = Horror...American Express Blue = Love.

Last month Dominic Cifarelli  and Morokath Redman used my credit card to rack up over $6000.00 dollars in Airline tickets. I'm sure you can imagine the anxiety and the panic that I felt when I opened up my credit card statement.

Oh.
My.
Word.

It amazes me that people are okay with being so dishonest.

It totally blows my mind.

Maybe they didn't have a good mom like I did who made them walk back into the grocery store at the age of six and return the stolen candy-bar. Or maybe they just need a Bishop that looks them in the eye's every year and asks them if they are honest in ALL their dealings.

I just don't get it.

Needless to say I felt violated.

So I called up American Express to try and resolve the issue and their customer service was EXCELLENT.

Not only did they treat me like I was the victim, they didn't blame me or try to ask me a million questions. They just thanked me for my ongoing membership and took care of it all for me.

Took.
Care.
Of.
It.

People, this really happened. Like, in real life.


They just took care of it for me.

What?

Amazing. And I promise that this is not an advertisement for American Express. But I will be a Member for Life.

AmEx = Love

Liars = Stoopid (with two o's)

PS. I found this crazy lady picture on the web, but I think it kind of looks like me if you don't look to close and if you blur your eyes a little and if the room is dim. ;)

Sawyer Has Surgery

On July 29th, Scott and I had to take Sawyer to the hospital at 5:00 AM for Surgery.

When we arrived Sawyer was really happy.

As soon as the nurse came into the room he knew something was up and became

really mad and really worried. When Sawyer was born, we were advised not to have his circumcised.

Sawyer was born without much of a foreskin and the Pediatrician felt it was in his best interest to wait until he was a little older to see if he would even need to have it done.

Well, we waited and at his check-up we were told that it was up to us if we wanted to do it. 

We decided that it was better now than at the age of 14 or something.

I will just give you my opinion for a second...

ONLY BABIES SHOULD BE CIRCUMCISED.

Don't ever wait. It was horrible.

The Doctor's gave Sawyer a drug that was suppose to make him really loopy.

It took a while for it to kick in.

Luckily the nurse had a Thomas Book and this helped Sawyer calm down 

quite a bit as the drug started to take it's effect.

It was so sad seeing him so upset. Luckily, they waited until he was under anesthesia before putting his IV in.

Scott wasn't going to come with me this morning, but I'm so glad that he did. Sawyer weighs a ton, plus having Wyatt with me also would have just been too much.

The saddest part was when they came to take him for surgery. He didn't want to lay on the bed, so the Dr. held him in his arms and Sawyer wrapped his arms around the Dr.'s neck and then Sawyer just stared at Scott and I as they carried him towards the Operating Room. Both Scott and I said to each other that we will never forget that moment. It was SWEET and AWFUL at the same time.

This photo is after the Surgery as Sawyer is trying to come out of his Anesthesia. He was so upset. 

He cried and screamed for a LONG time.

Scott walked the halls with him for two hours. Scott has strong arms because I wouldn't have been able to make it 15 minutes. At one point Scott rolled past the room where I was on a big  office chair with Sawyer in his arms. It thought this was so funny. He stole the chair from someones office.

This is my favorite picture. The lighting is terrible, but it is what I remember from that moment.

A father taking care of his son.

No Greater Love.

We took Sawyer to Toy's R Us to pick out a new train. This lifted his spirits a lot.

The next week was really hard for him. He still ran around and played, but he would stop sometimes and cry a little and grab his diaper and say OW-eeeeeee.

Good Heaven's please don't ever do this to your child.

He is all better now, but it was sad.

AND EXPENSIVE.

What was I thinking...

30 hours.

This is how long I have gone without nursing Sawyer.

Sawyer has been slightly cranky.

He is a little mad at me.

But mostly he is fine.

He's Fine!

Me.

On.

The.

Other.

Hand.

Someone shoot me.

Or chop my boobs off.

Quitting cold Turkey.

What. Was. I. Thinking?

December Bliss

Today was just a great December day. The kids were off to School by 8:10 this morning and Sawyer was still asleep. Scott was reading his scriptures by a nice toasty fire. The Christmas tree lights were shimmering and I was wrapped in my bed sheet. (Yes, I actually ripped my sheet off my bed and wrapped up nice and snug.) Scott and I snuggled by the fire and then I was even able to get in a workout at the gym before picking Kate up at 10:30am.

I love being a stay at home mom. I had nothing on the agenda today besides laundry. The kids played outside in the snow. I watched from the window as Dylan tackled Kate completely white washing her. There were no tears. Just smiles and laughter. Kate threw snowballs at Dylan and I sat laughing to myself, spying on sibling play.

And now dinner is steaming on the stove. I have lots of presents to wrap. I didn't get any laundry done, but who cares, I can just do that tomorrow. I love being able to just be a mom, if it gets clean, it gets clean, if it doesn't it doesn't. Sometimes it is nice to just enjoy the little things.

I am a mother and today is a good day.

The Evolution of the Naughty Stool!