Braces

I have finally gotten around to writing about Jason's braces. I know it has been like four months. But, sheesh I have been so busy it is crazy. So, we got braces way back when, and he loves them. He really needed them. So, we decided that we could either wait until Brian was done with school and most likely have to have oral surgery to fix is overbite or get them done while we are living near OHSU and pay less money and not have oral surgery. We obliviously choose option "B".
So today we went back to the orthodontist. I was hoping this appointment would be in and out real quick. I don't know what I was thinking, they are never in and out (it did not help that we were late this time). At OHSU we are not paying for quick service when the Dr. is in training. When the Dr. came and got me he told me that they decided to put his head gear on him today. At first I was like okay great! Then I got a closer look and was taken back a little. He was so happy. His first thing he said was, "Mom look I am a football player." I was like right son you sure are. Dr. Cook (his ortho) could not believe how easy Jason was at wearing this gear. I was a little shocked too. I think it helped that there was no mirror for him to get a good look at himself. Jason was so excited that he decided to wear out to the car and all the way to school, where he had me take it off.
In like ten years I am going to remind him of his enthusiasm when we go through round two of braces. I have a feeling he will not be as excited.

My third grader

Today Jason started third grade. Wow time flies so fast. He was super excited to go to school today. Now that he is in 3rd grade he gets to go upstairs. He has waited a whole year for this right of passage. I took him to school like I always do. I know that this could be one of my last years taking him to his first day of school. I have been told that one day he will want to go by himself. It is just a tradition. However, today as I left he told me, "Mom tomorrow I will take the bus." I think the pictures say it all. I could not even get him to smile. They grow up so fast.
He has two different teachers. Mrs. Rose and Mrs. Henderson. I think this is kinda weird but, I am sure he will get use to it. Hogan Cedars is a great school I feel blessed that we were able to move into an area that has such a wonderful caring staff. I hope we have a great year this year.

Parenting: Touching the Hearts of Our Youth

This is an awesome video. Someone once told me, "if you don't listen to the little things your child tells you, when the big things come around they will not tell you." I am not perfect, we are working on this everyday. I hope all will enjoy this great talk from Elder Hales.

Parenting: Touching the Hearts of Our Youth

Our Next Home

I know this is super early, but I am going to start making my list of what I want in our next home. I am sure I am thinking about it more because is it so HOT. And we have no A/C. This is the first time since we left Utah like 9 years ago that we have not had A/C. This is also the very last time I will ever live in a home without it. The heat makes me so grumpy. I should be a joy to around in like 10-15 years.
So, this is mainly for me but any can read it. With residency less than two years away I have decided that it is never too early to start my list.

• A/C is a must, or we will have to live in a place like Alaska where it doesn't matter.
• I want a bigger kitchen. What is wrong with my I keep picking places with Kitchens fit for a family of two.
• Walk in pantry. I have three/four hungry boys/man and have no where to put all the food they eat.
  
• Lastly, I want my own bathroom. There is nothing nicer than when you are trying to get ready for the day and there is water splatted all over the mirror, or toothbrushes laid all over the counter. I love my boys, I just need a little space now and than.

Okay this list is short but I will be adding to it.

Making Ice Cream

Today Jason and Kaylee made ice cream. I have been wanting a ice cream maker for a while now. But, I just have not brought myself to by one. I decided to use what we have at home, minus the rock salt. Who ever has rock salt readily available. We were going to make some for all the kids. Then as we were getting things ready I decided that this would just be a big kid activity. I am so glad I did. Like less than a couple of minutes into it. I ended up doing all the shaking. Kaylee and Jason decided that it was too cold for them. Oh well, it was fun anyway it also tasted alright I was surprised.. On a side note I am glad the little kids forgot about making ice cream when they woke up from their naps. (thank goodness for Dora Popsicle)

The Good and the Bad

Over the last few months we have added a new item to our bedtime routine. It is something I learned when I was in college. I forgot about it and recently read from my friend's blog about it. It is called "The good and the bad". Before the boys go to bed, I asked them, "okay tell me the good and the bad." So, Jason and Matthew tell me one good thing and one bad thing that has happened during the day. (sometimes they tell me more than just one, which is fine I usually only cut them off when we get to more than five or the other one is crying that they want to share too) Recently Gavin has joined the fun. He noticed it the whole two days he was sleeping with the older boys. Unfortunately he was sent packing back to the office. He is such a trouble maker, as long as he is by himself he will sleep otherwise it is playtime forever. So, the other day I put him in his crib and was getting ready to walk out when he started to scream. This is unusual for him unless he has a dirty diaper. So, I went back and kissed him goodnight after making sure he was clean. I started to walk out and he screamed again so I asked him, "tell me the good and the bad" he said something I am not sure what it was. I let him know I understood even if I didn't. Then he laid down and got his blanket and feel asleep. It was pretty cool . I love sharing these last moments with the boys checking up on their day. And they love it too, Jason and Matthew, (mainly Matthew) always fight over who is going to go first. And they will never go to sleep unless they get to say one good thing, we don't always have a bad thing. Which is okay, this has taught me that I should do the same thing with my Father in Heaven before I go to bed. He wants to know what has gone right and wasn't during my day.

oaksberry

The last few days have gone by so fast. We have been a busy family. On tuesday I took the boys to Oaks Park. We had a ton of fun, up until we went on the balloon ride. Now I know why I always had Ellie take my boys on that ride. I tried with all my might to get the darn Balloon to stop going in circles it work some what but the damage was done. We stayed for the rest of our time, but I was never so happy to come home and take a nap. I had the worst headache ever. Thank goodness for some Tylenol.
After our nap Jason helped me make some edible play dough. It was a lot fun. We came up with some pretty neat colors. Even though we only played with it for like 20 minutes it was fun to make anyway. Jason let me know that he prefers the real stuff. Go figure!
On Thursday I took the boys to pick berries at our favorite Blueberry picking place in Canby. I forgot that it was way out there. The last time we went we were living in Oregon City. Oh, well thank goodness for a DVD player. (Ellie don't get mad we will still go picking with you guys when you get back we will need more). Picking blueberries with Gavin was very intersting. I knew it would be the easiest of all our the berries. He loves them. He went from bush to bush grabbing a ton of berries and shoving them all in his mouth at once. I am going to need more diapers. I gave all the boys a bucket to fill up. They really liked it. Jason surprised me and actually put more in his bowl than he ate. Well, I think. Matthew and Gavin just ate their little hearts out. I always feel bad and want to offer money to the farmers, but they never take it. We picked 8 pounds of berries, they will be gone before summer is over I know it.
After we went berry picking it was time for lunch. I wasn't sure if they would be hungry or not with all they had ate. They were of course. So, we stopped by Subway and had lunch. Gavin fell asleep in the car after like two minutes after we left the farm. So, he woke up in time for us to get ready to leave Subway and demanded he have some too. So, our lunch date that would have take like 20 minutes took over an hour. Just a side note lunch time is a bad time to eat at subway with three children. Then, we went to the Oregon City library and play at the water park. It was a long day, but very fun.

catching up!

This has been a crazy summer so far. My goal starting out this summer was to update our family blog weekly. Well, that all went out the window the first week.We have been extremely busy the last few weeks. So now it is time to play catch up with our events so far this year. It all started out when Brian had to study and take the comlex board exam in mid-june. This was a very hard and stressful time for our family. Even though only Brian was the one taking the test we were all worried and stressed out.
After the exam my mom came out to help me with Jason's baptism. I am so thankful that she came out. I would not have been able to get everything done in time without her. Jason had a wonderful baptism. It was a little stressful, but it was worth waiting for my Dad to arrive so that he could see one of his grandchildren get baptized. Ellie sang a wonderful song, "I am trying to be like Jesus". (i love this song) And Jennifer gave a great talk about baptism. I am so thankful also to Heather who played the piano on such short notice and for so long. It is so wonderful to have family members that are willing to help out. I was also glad that Sister Budge moved their ward party outside. It made things less complicated than they were.
Between the baptism and Brian's boards I was able to take the boys strawberry picking. I took the two older boys separate making it a whole lot easier. I also was able to spend some alone time with each of them. I took Matthew on a Saturday that had really bad weather. He like it anyway. We went for a half hour.
I think that is all he could take. Then, a couple of days later Jason and I went with Ellie and Kaylee, it was so much fun. We found a great place to pick our strawberries and the berries were so cheap. I think we will go back there again next year. The boys always eat more than they pick. Oh well, it is a lot of fun. Gavin will have to wait until next year or the year after that. He is too crazy for me to take Strawberry picking right now.
After the baptism we went to Corvallis Oregon. There is a residency program there that Brian wanted to check out. So we went along with him to check out Corvallis. It was pretty nice there. The program seemed very nice. I think we can add Corvallis to our list of possibilities of residency programs. The boys like the little park they had there. It was kinda cool it reminded me of parks you can find in Iowa. The park had a castle theme and all the boys had so much fun!
So after Corvallis we took the boys to Tillamook and to the Oceanside to see the coast of Oregon. The weather was cold and wet for most of they trip. We all had fun in Tillamook seeing the Cheese factory. The kids liked seeing where we get all the cheese they eat. At the cheese factory they have this big cow. Gavin was so afraid of this it was funny. It is tough when your the youngest because your older brothers can tease you and that is exactly what Jason did. We also enjoy our trip to the Ocean even if it was rainy. We went through this cave which was really cool. It went through a mountain. The boys enjoyed seeing and playing in the water. Jason especially loved it. The beach was so pretty the only thing that bugged me was all the rocks. We were hoping to take some shells home. We found a few, but after Gavin was done with they looked like the others at the beach broken. Oh, well we will just have to wait until next year. Here are some pictures of the beach and our family. Please excuse Matthew he fell at the end of our journey and was not a happy camper.




Into the cave





You know you live in Oregon when you wear
rain boots to the beach.












Before he fell off a tree trunk and hit his head









This has been our summer so far, we still have lots more planned. Thank goodness we purchased a new car. Oh I forgot to mention we bought a second car. I love it!!

Last Day of School

Today was Jason's last day of the Second grade. I am so proud of him and all he has learned and grown so much this year. He had a great teacher this year which helped a ton.
We are looking forward to a wonderful summer with some fun activities. Some of our activities will be yearly traditions that we do every year like, picking berries, going to different parks, and going to oaks park. However, I am very excited for some of the new things we have planned this year like going to the beach, taking a hike to mt. Hood, going to the children s museum and signing Jason and Matthew up for the summer reading program at the library (we have done this before but have forgotten about it). Jason will also be attending Cub Scout camp this summer. I am so happy and excited to start working with him on his scouting. I just hope summer will actually arrive here in Oregon so we can do theses fun things.
Another new thing that we are going to start today is our new summer chores. I will write about them tonight or tomorrow. I got a great idea from another mom on a blog and I am so excited to get started with it.




At the starting of this year

Last day of this year

The Young Women of Walters Hill

Today was my last Sunday as Secretary in the Walters Hill Young Women. Next Sunday they are changing the ward boundaries and the Stake President has that the bishops do kinda blanket releasing of all callings. I am kinda sad, I just love the Young Women they are so awesome. I think serving in the Young Women's is the best calling. You get to know the girls so well and grow with them. This is my second time in YW's and I hope that I get to be in many more times. Each girl is so unique and special. They each bring with them different talents, needs and problems. But they have all one goal and that is to feel loved.
I learned so much from each of them. I got to know the Beehives due to the fact that I got to work with them in their class on Sunday. I also got to know the Laurels well, they were always wanting to talk to the adults. You know how it is when you are 16-18 those little Beehives and Mia Maids too sometime get on your last nerves. Especially when some of them are you sisters.
Well, I just want to write about a few of them and what they have taught me this year. All of the stories come from the Laurels and one Beehive.
Gabby is such a wonderful girl. She had a hard time coming to church all the time. Three years ago this month her Dad took her Mom's life then took his own. Dear Gabby found the bodies. Her mothers sister volunteered to take Gabby and her two brothers into her home. The Aunt is the awesome example of Christ like love. She is a single woman raising a teenager, a 11 year old that has severe ADHD and a 6 year old. It has been hard, but I never see her complain even today when the 11 year old was going crazy she seemed to keep her cool and he got to visit us today in Relief Society.(we were joined) One day I would love to see Gabby be baptized. I know she will her aunt is an awesome example for her, even if she can't see it right now.
Emily our over achiever. She has done the YW Personal Progress two times. She has the date circled on the calendar when she can go to Relief Society. She has had enough of the little girls.
Kelly is such a wonderful mom. She made mistake, but it has not kept her from being at church with her little Lucas every Sunday. She is an example to me of never giving up even when life gets hard. She will graduate in soon. She is planning on attending Nursing school in the fall while she raises her son and works at Dr. Allen's dentist office. She is also an awesome Nursery teacher to my two sons.
Last we have little Luet. I am so proud of her. Two weeks ago she said a prayer in public for the first time. We have been trying to get her to say a prayer in Beehives for a year. She did it and she is working hard despite the fact that her Mom had a brain aneurysm and was diagnosed with MS. Luet is currently living with a member of the ward while her mom recovers from surgery. I personally think it is the best thing for this little girl.
These are just a few of the wonderful examples of these brave, christ like young women in the Walters Hill Ward. I will never forget them. I hope that some of these girls will be in the new ward. If not I will always remember them along with the great leaders. I will talk about them later, because I love these sister so much too.

Eight Years

Eight years ago today, our lives changed forever as we became "dad" and "mom". Today our dear sweet Jason turned 8. It is hard for us to believe how fast time has gone. We had a little family party for him this year. Instead of having a big party we decided that we would take him to the movie theater to watch Toy Story 3.
As the week has gone by I have thought about the many things Jason has done and learned over this last year. Here are a few of them.

• At the starting of this year we were happy to have the return of our Dad. It was hard, having Dad gone, but we did it and Jason stayed strong.
• In August we moved out of the Guest house into our own place, which means that you (Jason) got to have your own room again. Then, just a few months ago we got you and Matthew bunk beds and you totally love them.
• Starting a new school was hard for you, leaving all your old friends in OC, but you have quickly made new ones and enjoyed your new school.
• We are learning that playing Xbox is a privilege and not a right. Some days we forget and receive little reminders as we see our Jedi Dots diminishing and that we might not have earned enough to play on Friday.
  
• You have realized that being "grounded" stinks.
• After many trips to the Orthodontist and a retainer your overbite is getting so much better. I am glad we did not have to do braces yet.
• We are thankful to the many opticians at Costco that have fixed our glasses. You are learning that you are not one of them. And we need to leave it to the professionals to fix our glasses when our little brother grabs them and rearranges them.
• You are currently reading a 4th grade book, "Tales of the Fourth Grade Nothing" and loving it.
• Two weeks ago we finished our first indoor soccer experience. On your last game in the last second you scored your first goal.
• Finally, you have gained your first testimony of the scriptures. Today while I was making your breakfast you told me, "Mom I have prayed and read (we have the kids version) The Book of Mormon and New Testament to know if these books are true. And God told me yes." I never want you to forget how you felt as you prayed this morning.

This has been a wonderful year and I am so excited for Jason to be baptized. can't wait to see what I will be writing about next year as you turns 9.

Sleeping Kids

On Saturday Jason had his last soccer game.Thank goodness we have the whole summer to recoup until Fall sports. During one of the games (he had a double hitter) one of the moms commented on the size of our family. I guess she just has one kid. She told the other mom that I have a 7,3, and 1 year old. Which was correct, however I have no idea how she got this information. Saturday was first time that I really had a conversation with her. Well, after she finished giving some lady my family history, she continued to tell the lady what time our kids go to bed.Maybe Brian told her because he usually take Jason to soccer, those wooden bleachers are hard on the back and bum. She was literally shocked that we are able to get all three of our boys to bed before 8 ( I wanted to inform her that our kids go to be at 7, but I didn't). She told me that she was lucky to get her 6 year old to bed before 9. Personally I think 6 year old should be in bed by 7. Also, I don't know why she was making a big deal about it. She is the parent and she should act like it(She is really crazy).
With our kids we have a routine, they know what to expect and what they should be doing when bedtime comes. We have used the same routine since they were little babies. If fact Matthew now asks, "Mom what clock is it", If I tell him, "7:00". He will tell me "time for bed". I think it is important for children to get a good night sleep. For me it is the saddest thing to go to the store and see little kids shopping at 9:00. Usually the child is crying and the parent is frustrated. Shopping is hard enough with kids, I could not imagine shopping with a super tired one.
Our bedtime motto here at the Grimwood house is "a well rested child is a happy, ready to learn child." We have times of difficulty especially now that Gavin has moved in with the boys.(he always wants to play, what a trouble maker):) However the times of difficulty are few. I feel blessed that our boys can go to sleep on their own, after a story, prayer, scriptures and a million kisses (this is for Matthew) they are on their way to dreamland.
Sorry no pictures, Gavin and I have been kicked out of the office so Brian can study for boards. Maybe next time.

Two down one more to go

I have been meaning to write this post for a while. Matthew is completely potty trained!! Actually he has been since around October. I wanted to write this back in November, but I was worried I would jink it. On Tuesday night when he came to me in the middle of the night and told me he had to pee, I knew it would be okay. I am so proud of Matthew. It only took a couple of days, and a few accidents for him to realize what was going on. I learned so much during this process. When it is Gavin's turn I plan on using the same method I used with Matthew. I am so thankful for my friend Heather and for her sharing her potty training advise with me. Matthew was the easiest kid to p/t ever. All kids are different and they learn differently, but I pray this method will work for Gavin.
If anyone is interested this is what you do. When your child wakes up from a nap dry, then you take them to the potty and introduce the concept. They know that when their bladder is full and that they are suppose to empty it in the potty. Also, you don't mention the word "potty" until they get to this point. (we kinda messed-up here) The only thing we did different was when Matthew first turned two I automatically decided that he was ready to be potty trained. I thankful he let me know he wasn't. So, I put it on the back-burner for a while. Then, in October I read he blog and decided that we would try it. It worked now he goes whenever he needs to. I hardly ever ask him, unless I can tell he has to go.
I am going to brag a little here. This method only took Matthew maybe a week or less to learn . It was so not stressful. In fact the most stressful thing was keeping Gavin away from the toilet paper. I know some people that read this blog like the EC thing, which is fine. It is just not for me and my family. I also know that there are some that believe that once a child hits 2 that they must be potty trained. ( this is the crowd I was in with Jason) However after experiencing a wonderful peaceful potty training experience with Matthew (something I wish I had with Jason). I will never go back to those methods again. Now, Matthew knows what he needs to do and he does it.

My little readers

Recently, the little boys have taken a great interest in reading our cereal boxes during breakfast. After watching Jason always read them they have decided that they want to read them also. Jason, is not actually reading a box in the picture he spoke too late. So, he got one of his books instead. We do talk during breakfast, but the boys really enjoy reading the cereal boxes.
Today, while we were shopping at DI. We stopped by the book section. I was looking for a Judy Blume book for Jason. (they are always checked out at the library)I found, but Jason had already found a book he liked. Of course it was Star Wars novel. I let him know that their were no pictures and that the book was long. He told, "no problem, I will ready anyway".I think has to be for middle school kid. But, not for Jason he started reading it while we finished our shopping. I think he is ready for some Harry Potter books, if I could only find them. I am so proud of our little readers they inspire me to want to read more.

Look Mom

Yesterday Matthew came to me and said, "Look Mom lipstick." He was pretty close. The picture tells it all. He wasn't so happy when bath time came.

Saturday Fun!

Today so wonderful. The weather was nice and I was able to get many things done and spend quality time with my boys. Here are some fun things that we did today

• After Jason's soccer game we came home to see a squirrel eating a peanut butter sandwich in our tree. I tried to take a picture of him he was so cute. Jason wanted me to make another sandwich for him. I let him know that one was enough.(besides I did not want to encourage feeding animals).

Jason looking up at the squirrel with binoculars that don't work. I guess we should
check on those glasses again.

• Jason and I got to spend some quality time playing in our beautiful backyard. Sometimes it is hard to find time to play or explore with just the two of us. Usually during the week our alone time is spent working on homework. So, on Saturdays we work hard to have Jason and mom time. Here are some pictures we took of our wonderful garden.

This is my poor Marionberry plant. It has met the hands of Gavin one too many times.
My three blueberry bushes. They started out small but they are getting
BIGGER!!

We are getting ready to plant a couple of tomato and pepper plants. We tired doing the seed thing, but all this stink-en rain ruined them. And I forgot to make a couple of drainage wholes in the pots. We don't have a whole lot of space for a garden so I purchased some planters where else the Dollar Tree. Man I love that store! We want to teach the boys that it doesn't matter how much space you are given there is always room to grow your own veggies and fruit. One day we will have a larger space to grow until than we will grow in pots. If you look really close my
a few of my flowers met their doom at the hands of a one year old.

Gavin is officially in Nursery

Today was Gavin's first official day in Nursery. Before today I would take him for just an hour either for Sunday School or YW's. But, after a wonderful most eventful Sacrament Meeting I decided that he was close enough (Friday he will be 18 months) and he was going to Nursery. Besides today was Ward Conference and I really wanted to attend the meetings. The, teacher informed me that right after he left he went straight over to Matthew and gave him a big bear hug. I wish we had our camera, but who brings a camera to church? We were told Gavin hugged Matthew for like 5 minutes! Matthew was okay with it for a minute. Than, I guess he got annoyed with it and tried to get Gavin off him. Too bad for Matthew that Gavin weighs almost as much as he does. During lesson time Gavin also grabbed hold of Matthew's ear and would not let go. I am glad that Gavin and Matthew get this chance to be in Nursery together. It saves the teacher from bringing Gavin to me and then me taking him back and playing this yo-yo game. I love my kids I enjoyed having a whole two hours at church to actually listen to the lesson. I have not had that since we had Matthew three years ago. I am going to bring my camera next week until than this picture will have to work.

I am back yet again.

I have been really bad about keeping up with this blog. It is very hard when our computer is in the same room as Gavin. I am looking forward to when we can have this room empty or when we have a bigger home with a family room where we can put our computer. Until, than I will just have to suck it up!
We have been super busy over the last few months. I am not going to sit here and type out everything we have done. But, I thought it would be nice to post some pictures of our adventures during our wonderful spring break.
We started off with a visit to the ER. Gavin tried to stand up on the armrest of our rocker. He ended up falling off and hitting his head on the fireplace. He left with three staples. He was so brave he did not even cry when they put them in. However, he did cry after he really wanted to play with the staple gun thing and anything else he could get his hands on (ER rooms are very interesting for a toddler).We also had a wonderful visit from the Easter bunny. I just have to say it is very interesting doing the Easter bunny thing with such a big age gap. But we made it fun for everyone. The Easter bunny sent a very important message from Captain Keys of Halo. The boys had to find the Halo guys.( I know I am going to mess up this whole Halo thing but hey I am a girl in a boy's world here). It was a ton of fun watching all the boys work together. This is a picture of the letter that the boys received during their Easter hunt. I hope it turns out alright.We also tried some new recipes. One was called Red Velvet Oreo. I don't know why I use Red Velvet cake mix with three boys. I just like using Resolve and cleaning up red dye from the carpet. Below is what your one year old might look like after eating a Red Velvet Oreo.Or this.
Well, I hope to repent become a better blogger however, there are no promises here.

My little guinea pigs

The last few weeks I have been trying new snack recipes. Last week I made Granola balls. That's right I said Granola balls. At first I thought they were kinda strange. I mean who ever thought of making a Granola bar into a ball. But, after making them they looked pretty interesting. I made them on Thursday for all the kids. I read the directions wrong and thought they had to be in the freezer for a while. Well, after realizing that I had left out the last part of the recipe when I copied and pasted it. I quickly put the balls in the fridge after they were only suppose to be in the freezer for a couple of hours then transferred to the freezer. Anyway, even though I had made a tiny little error the kids loved them. I am thankful for my six little guinea pigs that let me try new and sometimes unusual recipes on them.