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Happy Birthday, Kate!

Katelyn's first birthday was Wednesday. We had a family party. I can't even say a little family party because when both sides of our family get together, it isn't little anymore! It's so fun to have grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins from the Vanderbeek and Hillman sides together! I decided to try making little duck cupcakes for the event. I got better as I went along, but they're not great. Then, I had a vision of a little duck on a Katelyn-size lake. Again, my vision and my creation are not the same! But, it was fun to try and hopefully someday my visions and creations will match. For now, it's a work in progress! Most importantly, we are blessed to have an adorable, healthy and happy little girl. We love Kate so much!

Payton aka Fashionista

Payton loves to dress up. She goes through spurts: princess, fairy, bride, ballerina, etc. Right now she is... well, I don't know what she is! But, she needs hair accessories- lots of hair accessories to complete the look she's going for.

Easter Weekend

We had an awesome Easter Weekend! Our weekend was really focused on the gospel of Jesus Christ. A boy in Sydney's class at school has been taking the discussions at our house. He decided to be baptized on Saturday. He asked Brian to perform the baptism. It was a wonderful experience for our family. We've enjoyed having the missionaries teach in our home. And, it was great to see our prayers answered. Then, on Sunday we attended church and spent the day with family.
All week we've been trying to remind the girls that Easter is not about the Eggs and the Bunny, but about the life and sacrifice and resurrection of our Savior. Sydney gets it, and I think Payton has it in her head for at least a while!

A Few Bumps Along the Way...

We started this year out with a bang! New Year's Eve (at midnight) found Kate and I at the Urgent Care. Kate had a terrible cough and was having difficulty breathing. Luckily, Aunt Melissa was working-- she was a bright spot in our miserable night! After a couple of days, Kate still wasn't feeling better and I took her to our family doctor. Diagnosis: Croup. I'd never experienced croup and now I can say it was one of the most miserable experiences! However, I love our family doctor!! He told us to turn off Kate's bedroom heat, crack open her window and have her sleep in her snowsuit! Sounds crazy, but it worked! The cold air soothed the swelling in her throat and within a week she was better.
While Kate was sick, colds prevailed at our house! Only Sydney escaped. I got a double whammy-- I threw out my back, too! After a week of coughing and sniffling and probably a million tissues, everyone was better-except me!
I finally agreed to go to the doctor and was given an antibiotic for an ear infection and a sinus infection.
On the same day that I started antibiotics, our van was being looked at. (Insert ominous music here.) As with most car troubles, this was not a cheap fix-- and there were multiple fixes!!
Well, the car was fixed, everyone was on the mend and January is about over. But, our bumps are not! Just before finishing my round of antibiotics, I started getting a horrible headache and my face started twitching. I thought maybe all the worrying and sleepless nights were catching up to me and tried to ignore it. But, by Monday (two days ago) I couldn't ignore it anymore. The right side of my face was numb and tingly, I couldn't feel part of tongue or close my right eye. So, into the doctor I went, again! The semi comical conclusion to our month is that I have Bell's Palsy. It's not very serious, but it is frustrating and somewhat painful! (see WebMD for details.) I have a minor case. It feels worse than it looks, thankfully! It's hard to eat with half of my mouth not working and it's almost impossible to make up on an eye that won't stay closed! But, Brian is trying to keep me upbeat and has taken to calling me Lilo and Twitch!
Now, before this post begins to look too much like list of complaints, let me get to the moral of the story:
I am so grateful for my blessings and my trials because they are mine. Heavenly Father knows each of us so well. I can handle my trials because He is always there for me and my family. I can chalk this month of bumps and bruises up to experience. I am coming away from all these little trials unscathed. I am blessed.

Serious Reflections

Sydney shared a very serious 8-year-old thought with me on Sunday evening: "Whenever I sing 'Families Can Be Together Forever,' I remember childhood memories." I asked Sydney to give me some examples, and she listed some every day experiences. What a sweet little girl!

Payton was watching Brian kill a spider. It was a tiny spider, so Brian was teasing us about not killing it ourselves. He asked Payton, "What if the spider jumps on my hand and eats me?" Without missing a beat, Payton replied, "We'll have to get a new dad." We laughed, but it also made me think about how grateful I am for my little family.

Santa Knows My Name!

Payton got the thrill of a life time at Sydney's Choir concert. Santa came to visit at the end of the concert. 'Santa' happened to be our former Bishop, Clint Francis. While making his rounds and waving to kids, he stopped and said, "Hello, Payton." Her jaw dropped and she stood for nearly a minute, speechless. Then, in a very excited little voice, "Santa Claus knows my name!!" Now, what will she do when she watches this?

http://www.portablenorthpole.tv/watch/gsMlBQRDICsdKbhOTxOf4TA (Payton)
http://www.portablenorthpole.tv/watch/gd6Dlk--VktsxXjuP9gQeyA (Sydney)

Conferences

We've just finished a week of 'conferences'. We had Parent Teacher Conference with Payton and Sydney's teachers and we had Stake Conference this weekend. With so many different kinds of conferences, no wonder Payton was confused:
While we were getting ready to go meet with her teacher, Payton asked if we were going to watch conference on a big tv. I laughed and explained that church conference is different than school conference. Then, Sunday morning at our Stake Conference, Payton kept looking around for Pres. Monson. She did not understand why he wasn't there!
As a side note, both girls are doing great in school! They are learning and growing. They are helpful and kind. My mom always told me how happy it made her to go to parent teacher conference, and now I understand. I'm so proud of my girls!!

Happy Halloween

This year Sydney and Payton picked their costumes without any help from me. Sydney has been reading "Little House on the Prairie" and "My America"; so, she decided to dress as a pioneer. Payton has been fascinated with witches lately. I'm not sure why, but she decided to dress as a witch. But, she assured us that she is a good witch! Katelyn wore the traditional pumpkin costume that each of our older girls wore their first Halloween.

Kate is growing up so fast!

Kate loves to splash in her little tub.


Her first bite of food. She didn't even make a funny face!


Our baby is not such a baby anymore. She is eating food (and loving it!), she rolls all over and she can sit up on her own (until she gets excited and tips herself over!). She is a happy baby and we love her so much. Sydney and Payton are very helpful with their sister-- sometimes too helpful, but they mean well.

Hillman Cousins

Our three girls!

Everyone!

Just before school started, the girls had their pictures taken with their cousins from Brian's family. It was quite an ordeal, but definitely worth it! The photographer took some amazing photos. These are just 2 of my favorites.

School Days

Sydney is loving third grade and Payton is learning so much in preschool. It's so fun to watch their excitement for learning. It is also a blessing to have well behaved and very smart children!

How to clean practically anything

Sydney: How do you clean a trophy?
Me: Just use a clean cloth and dust it off.
Sydney: Like a kleenex?
Me: Sure. Why?
Sydney: Maybe one of my daily chores should be to clean my trophy.

Sydney played baseball this summer and had a wonderful time. Each of the kids got a trophy. Obviously Sydney loves her trophy! After the above conversation, Brian found Sydney on the couch reading a book titled: How to Clean Practically Anything. She was very annoyed that 'trophy' was not listed!

Bear Lake 2011

Kate's cheeks are so chubby! I just want to squish them!
Our four generation picture: Mom, Me, Kate and Grandma Smart.
The girls! Brian always seems to be taking the pictures instead of being in the pictures!

We always have a wonderful time during our week-long vacation to Bear Lake. This year was no exception! But, unlike the past several years, the water was up to normal levels. Brian and our daughters had not ever seen the lake at its high water level. We had so much fun at the cabin: in the water, playing games, watching movies, eating yummy treats and more. We had a house full-- about 22 people and everyone had a great time. And, Grandma Smart came to spend one night with us. It made me a little teary to see Grandma at the cabin without Grandpa, but it was great to have her there with us. We tried to get her to relax and just sit down for a moment, but of course she had to be up and busy! We had a wonderful vacation!

Splish, Splash, Summer Fun

Summer took a while to get here, but now that we are having some real summer weather, the girls are having a blast! They love to play in the water: slip n' slide, sprinkler, pool, hot tub-- it doesn't matter. They love to get wet!

I belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

To prepare for Sydney's baptism, we spent quite a few Family Home Evenings talking about why we are baptized, how we are baptized and the importance of making the decision. I was so impressed with Sydney's knowledge of the gospel. She knew so much already about repentance and baptism and the Holy Ghost.

Baby Blessing

Katelyn was blessed on Sunday, June 5. I am just really behind in posting. It was a wonderful day. We are blessed to have a lot of family near enough to attend. And, we have great family and friends that are willing to travel to attend our special events. We appreciate their effort to be here and support us.
On a sad note, it was the first big event in our little family that Grandpa Smart has missed. Grandma Smart came and it was wonderful to see her, but there was a touch of sadness.

Eight Years Old!

We went to Texas Roadhouse for Syd's birthday dinner (her favorite place) and they happened to have a person making things out of balloons. So Sydney requested a mouse and Payton wanted a motorcycle.

Sydney and Grandma Vanderbeek made the birthday cake this year.

I really can't believe how quickly Sydney is growing up. It's so exciting to watch her learn and grow and mature. She is a wonderful daughter! She helps so much with her sisters, she is a cleaning fanatic and she has such a sweet spirit. Happy Birthday Sydney, We love you!!

Compassion

Payton has a stuffed puppy that she carries everywhere. The name of the puppy varies between Roxi, Charlie and Zoe (names of our friends' real dogs). This poor puppy has been through a lot in the short 6 months that Payton has owned it. The seam on the back finally gave out. For the past couple weeks I've found little bits of fluff all over the house that have fallen out. I finally made time this morning to sew the ripped seam. Payton was very concerned when I got a needle and thread out of my sewing box. "Why do you need a needle?" was her worried question. I explained that I had to sew up the puppy's back. The whole time I was sewing, Payton kept reassuring her puppy it would be ok. "I know needles are scary. It will be okay." She kept saying. Payton is so compassionate. She is quick to remember her sisters when she gets a special treat or when they are upset or hurt. She is a good example to all of us!

Bad Dreams

Payton had a bad dream last night. She woke up screaming about spiders in her bed. It was so real to her that I couldn't get her to go back to bed. She ended up on the couch with a blanket. As soon as she went to sleep, she woke up with the same dream. I finally convinced her that her bed did not have spiders. She agreed to go back to bed (in her own bed) if I put the fly swatter on the floor next to her bed. It must have worked, because she didn't complain about spider dreams after that. However, she was so wide awake that she didn't go back to sleep almost 3 hours. She finally went to sleep at 5am. As frustrating as it was to be up most of the night, I feel so bad for little Payt. I wish I could take my children's bad dreams away. It makes me feel helpless when they get so scared and worked up about something that isn't even real.