Jane at gymnastics

Over the summer Jane told me she'd like to try gymnastics, so we signed her up and she started in the fall.

She LOVES it!

Yesterday was "camera day" when parents are allowed to come into the gym and take pictures. It was dark in there and she was moving quickly, so you'll have to excuse the "grainyness" of the pictures (I'm still hoping to get a fast lens one day.)

 Pay no attention to this "photobombing child" who was running for her turn!

 Handstands.

 I'd kind of like to do this myself -

bouncing down the length of the trampoline doing straddle jumps ...

... then landing in the giant foam pit.

Pivot turns on the beam.

Even as she falls, she smiles.

Handstands on the beam.

Looking at those long, lanky legs I realized that even though I am the shortest of my siblings - I must be a "carrier" of height because she definitely gets those from my side of the family!

A Tender Moment with Jane

I just have a few rules for Sacrament meeting in church.

(1) No leaving (get your drink & go to the bathroom beforehand!)

(2) If you can read, you sing the hymns.

(3) Quietly coloring is allowed for kids under 12 but only AFTER the Sacrament has been passed.

On #3 - I figure that they can sit quietly and listen to the announcements and start of the meeting for the first 15 minutes or so. It's good practice for when they are older and will need to be reverent for the entire meeting.

I used to take the crayons & notebooks but now Rick is in Primary he has the bag of stuff & has been packing them. Today when we sat down he handed them out right at the start (after 7 years on the High Council in our old stake, sitting with us in Sacrament meeting is new to him!) I reminded the kids "Not until after the Sacrament has been passed." Of course, my strong willed little girl wanted to push the boundary just as much as she possibly could, so started flipping though her book & turning pages.

"Jane" I whispered "if you can't keep that quietly on your lap, I'll have to take it."

"No, I like looking at it." she told me and continued to flip through it. I reached over to take it from her and she held onto it and pulled away. I quietly & firmly told her I was taking it because she couldn't hold it still in her lap. I pulled it out of her hands and put it under my seat. I looked over at her and she had big tears rolling down her face.

Right then they were saying the Sacrament prayer so I pulled her into my lap and cuddled her. As the young men passed the bread I silently prayed to my Father in Heaven to help me with this child he has entrusted me with. She is so strong willed, so stubborn and determined. Some days I am just exhausted navigating her emotions and our battle of the wills. I explained that I worried for her teenage years and the challenges we may face then. I asked for help in meeting her needs and teaching her, for more patience, more energy and more than anything to know what her unique need are.
Oh how I love this girl and want to do what is best for her!

As I sat cradling her and pouring my heart out, asking my Father in Heaven how best to partner with Him in teaching her, the sweetest spirit came over me and the words "STEADFAST AND IMMOVABLE" came to my mind. What an epiphany! I felt comfort and encouragement. Tears welled in my eyes as I realized that this sweet and spunky little girl can be a powerful force for good in the world. She can be a righteous influence amongst her peers. That unwavering will can become steadfast and immovable and serve her well when the ills of the world swirl around her.

It was a sweet, tender moment.

I am so grateful that I know I have the Lord to turn to as I raise these spirits of His. For the access I have to Him through prayer and the comfort and insight it can give me as a mother.

I am going to make sure that this scripture is on her wall, to remind me of that sweet inspiration as I parent her and to let her know that it is special for her.

"Therefore, I would that ye should be steadfast and immovable,
always abounding in good works."
Mosiah 5:15
 

 I had the lovely and talented Apryl Stott (who did Jane's birth announcement) create this for her to hang in her room and remind us of this experience.

 

I am also so truly grateful to my "Janie Baby" and her lively influence in our home.
We really would not be without her for anything!

Last Saturday

Today marks the start of our last week in our house. Each day we will be able to say "This is our last ______"

At this point, with the mess and piles of boxes, not buying any real food because I want to use up what we have and all the trips I am making to Connecticut for the building of the house - I just want to get it over with and be moved already!

I do know that as soon as we are settled, I'll miss it here - so I am trying to soak in the things I have loved about our house and our neighborhood as we go through our last week here.

After Swim Across America we came home to get some stuff I had to mail, and tile samples, etc. We left the 2 big girls to their own devices & took J&J. Jane was still repeating "I don't want to go look at tiles!" as we put her in the car. Sorry kiddos, today is just about getting things done!

We bought Rio for the iPad and they watched it on the way up. Thank goodness for technology and the boredom killer it is.

We first went to the granite place to look at a choice for the kitchen counter tops & island. We like the one named "Tiberius" that will please my Dad! I want to consult with the kitchen designer before making a final decision, so brought a sample of that and a few others we liked home. Then, we were on to the tile place a 45 minute drive away, so stopped at Subway for lunch.

I liked the first store for their selection and the nice way it was organized but the builder told us another place was cheaper. I like this marble basket weave. I'm thinking of it in a gray in our guest powder room.

We went to the tile place the builder had recommended.  Rick describes it as "a beautiful tile store ... after an earthquake" It is a jumbled mess but they do seem to have everything - once you can find it. It's cheaper for the same tile, so worth figuring out! Jake entertained himself on the iPad. Jane just drove me crazy. We need two iPads.

Then we stopped by the house to give the builder a check. Before starting the building they scraped all the topsoil into a mountain and weeds have grown all over it. The kids think it is the BEST play area ever, and really needed blow off energy by the time we got there, so I was thankful for it.

The stonework is almost finished on the chimney's.

Rick at the far end of our backyard. (See the little blue figure in the woods?)

They started putting on the roof and it's fun to be able to get more of an idea of what it will look like when it is finished.

And the windows have been delivered.

The second best play area is the sand pile at the house. Who would have though that construction sights are so much fun??

It's great to be able to actually see rooms now and get a sense of flow from one room to another.

I love the dormer windows!

As we headed home it started raining. We got home and ordered pizza for dinner. Then it was baths & bed for everyone. I could barely keep my eyes open and fell asleep lying next to the kids. I only got up long enough to take out my contacts & put on pj's & get right back into bed.

Mystic Aquarium

Since we're moving this summer we aren't taking a "real" summer vacation. Instead I planned a few weekend trips for our family close to home. One of our favorite aquariums is the one in Mystic, CT because they have Beluga's!

It's a great size - perfect to fill one day. They have the Beluga's (for Em) and a Ray touching pool that Jacob could spend hours hanging over. Actually, his fingers are usually all "pruny" by the time we drag him away from there! We often use this aquarium as a stopping point when we drive to Bar Harbor. We leave early in the morning - spend the day at the aquarium, have dinner in town (often at Mystic Pizza) and then let the kids sleep for a bit in the car until we got to Boston, where we spend the night. The next day the rest of the trip to Maine isn't so long. I guess once we move it won't really be worth doing that any more - but we'll still take trips to the Aquarium because we love it so much.

Emily has loved Beluga's since before she could walk! They used to have some at the Brooklyn Aquarium but they sent them down to Georgia for a breeding program a bunch of years ago. Belugas take a long time to be accepted into the pod, so they pretty much will never come back. Probably better for them, because they had a very boring tank in Brooklyn.

See. Just a big circle. Boring.

 

 These pictures are of Emily & Maya in 2005. Seriously, I can't believe it was that long ago - seems like just last week.

The set up at Mystic is pretty nice.

I was happy to cram a few last "family road trips" in before Rebekah left for BYU.  I know the kids complain about them sometimes (especially that teenager) but I also know that the time we spend as a family alone - without the interruptions of friends, team sports, practices and routines are the times that build memories and cement our hearts together - they are the times that carry them through when we aren't together.

Jake is the reason we make a bee-line for the touch pool but we all get a huge kick out of feeling the velvety soft rays and having them slurp those little fish out of our hands.

After lunch we let them have a turn driving the boats - which meant nothing more than trying to ram each others boats :)

Then we headed over to the penguins and had fun finding the camouflaged frogs (or are they toads, I can never tell) and spotting giant tadpoles in the pond.

Jane got to see her beloved "Pwengwins."

Then we went over the the "Australian" exhibit there - we couldn't miss that!

I used to see big flocks of yellow and green Budgies and distinctive Galah's flying in the fields behind our house when I was growing up. Their noisy song would wake me up in the summer. We'd go on hikes and see Rosella's ....

Seeing these birds and my children enjoying them made me so happy. Like bringing a piece of my childhood to them. Almost.

Back to another touch tank for crabs and sea stars.

And one last visit back to the ray touching pool (I think our 3rd for the day.)

After the aquarium we headed into town for a little while to get ice cream at our favorite spot on the water and let the kids browse though "Mystical Toys" - they have lots of Playmobil, so they always like to explore there (even Bek)!

Then headed south and had dinner at a great spot in New Haven and then to the hotel to sleep soundly!

Jane's Pre-Team Meet

Jane has been dying to be on swim team the past few years. It killed her to watch Emily & Jacob and not be included over the summer - especially as she could have made the swimming requirement (to be able to swim 25yds) last year. You have to be 5, so this year was her chance and she had been really looking forward to it.  You can imaging my surprise when she got out 1/2 way through practice the first few times, or just sat on the side of the pool and refused to move. It was not super hot then and she just got really cold and refused to keep going!

I really didn't care if she did it or not. She can already swim well, she's only 5 and she swims year 'round. I figured it's not like it was her only chance to be on swim team .... but I thought she would like it if she were warmer and didn't want her to think she could just give up so easily.

It was probably hard for Jane to go from swimming 1/2 an hour in a heated pool (which she does twice a week September to June) to 1 hour in a cold one. The kids are assigned to a lane for the duration of the pre-team. One of the teachers from their winter swimming, Jessica, was a coach in another lane. I knew she knew Jane's ability and that she could use all the buzz words that Jane already knew to get her motivated. Most of all, I knew she would work her a little harder and keep her moving which would warm her up. So, I asked her if I could switch Jane into her lane, which she did and it made everything much better. It also helped that the weather warmed up a little.

Today was the pre-team "meet." Jane was really excited and kind of nervous. First up was freestyle. She did a great job! She has a very nice freestyle stroke. I overheard someone watching say "She's going to be like her sister." She definitely wants it like Emily does!

Not bad for one of the youngest on pre-team.

I had Bek video from the end of the pool. (Sorry about the jiggles.)

Next was backstroke. Seriously, could this be any cuter?

She zig-zagged down the lane. Jacob was standing next to me at the side of the pool. He called out "Jane! Jane! Keep your head straight & back and your body will go straight too!" She actually stopped to look up at what he was saying. I yelled down "Just keep going Jane" - Sheesh buddy,  mid-race is not the time for pointers. Although how adorable is it that he gave them to her? Such a good big brother.

She stopped as she neared the end of the pool to see if she was getting close.

Then bonked her head on the wall anyway.

The last race was their choice - butterfly or breaststroke. Jane has a great little breaststroke but I think she might have overheard some praise for Emily's butterfly and decided to do 'fly.

She got up on the block and into this nice looking "take your mark" position.

Then did this!

Rick is calling it her "Wolverine Attack" dive.

Then, bless her little heart, she did "butterfly" the entire length of the pool. Both arms were going, she did a dolphin kick, she only came up to breathe every few strokes. She had all the fundamentals there (but she did look a bit like she was drowning the whole way down).

After their 3 races they were awarded a medal & a trophy by their lane coach & lane helpers.

AND they got italian ices.

I was so happy I moved Jane into Jessica's lane. She was super sweet and understanding with her and helped her have a great experience.

Way to go Jane! I am so proud of my littlest swimmer!