A day in the life of Nate's mother.

A couple of days ago I spent at least an hour re-organizing "retired" children's clothing that had been dumped by the boxful all over Nate's bedroom--by one Nate, during one naptime. Jamie Beth, my mini-organizer, sorted baby girl clothes from baby boy clothes, while I simultaneously grouped clothing by age, made a giveaway pile, and pulled out shirts that would fit Dallin next month. The house was surprisingly quiet as we worked: Matthew finished with chores and reading, Dallin working his way through his own chore list, Matt cleaning out the garage, Nate wandering to and fro and stopping to try the potty every 20 minutes (a timer was set just for him). Progress, I thought, actual progress on a big project. I was completely wrapped up in my task.

Cue the foreboding music.

"Oh no! Oh no!" Matt's voice called out from the living room. "Cissy...oh NO!"

I leapt over the piles around me and ran. Yes--leapt and ran, because only one thing in our house elicits such distressed exclamations: Nate. It took just a second to see the problem, and without going into too much detail, I'll tell you it involved Nate's inability to get to that potty. And it wasn't a wet problem.

Matt pointed to a spot on the floor. "It looks like he started there, then moved there," he pointed to another spot, "then he wiped it there, there, and put that baseball bat in it, there. "

My reaction was not calm, sweet, or instructive. I may have talked sternly and somewhat loudly to Nate, telling him (not quite yelling, but obviously upset), "Yuck! That's yucky! Why did you take off your underwear? When you feel p*** coming out, you run to the potty! The potty! Yuck! Aggghh!" He, half-naked and apparently with no olfactory senses, just looked at me and helpfully pointed out all the places I would need to scrub.

Whenever I clean up a bloody nose, a wet spot on the carpet, or midnight vomit, I think to myself, "It could be worse. At least it's not p***. It could always be worse." Well, now those thoughts immediately started to come again, but then swerved right smack into reality: "It could be worse--no, no, it can't! This is the worst that it could be! Ack!" I scrubbed and gagged and scrubbed and told still-half-naked Nate to "Stay right there, stay right there on the hard wood, and don't touch anything!" (I was thinking only in exclamation marks for a while.)

So there's the story of my day-to-day life: I clean up one of Nate's messes while he is making an infinitely worse one. And, I handle all of it with less than motherly grace. Good thing he's otherwise charming and sparkly--and resilient, I hope.

Honestly, that child better turn out to be brilliant.

The thoughts that roll around in his head.

The Cast:
Dallin, as usual
Cissy, the mean mom
Matt, the dad with a big laugh

The Setting:
Dallin has been playing on the Wii at Nana's house for days and days. He's beginning to think that every day should be a Christmas vacation. He is grumpy because Cissy has told him that this particular day was not a video game day, so, no, there would be no Wii.

Dallin: [stomping and pouting as grumpily as possible] Hmmph. That's not fair. When I'm bigger, I'm not getting married!

[Later that day, Cissy relates the above exclamation to Matt.]

Matt: [obviously perplexed] Married? What does that have to do with a Wii?
Cissy: [understanding of all things Dallin] Of course, you see, if he doesn't get married, he won't have a mom around to tell him he can't play the Wii.
Matt: [holding back a laugh, turns to Dallin] Is that why you don't want to get married?
Dallin: [proudly, stubbornly] Yup.

[Laughter abounds. Curtain falls.]

And to all a good night.

We enjoyed a wonderful Christmas day, a perfect ending to a season of gratitude and a year of blessings.

And just what were some of those blessings, the highlights from the past twelve months? Here are a few we came up with for our annual newsletter...

Rasmussen Family Favorites 2009

Nate (almost 3): Talking, asking questions, singing, and generally using his voice in many (loud) ways; mastering nearly every child-proof restraint in our home and car; managing to combine charm and mischief in an irresistible, exasperating way.

Dallin (5): Learning and loving to read; participating in his first sports class; creating Lego creations for hours on end; playing with a new best friend who moved in across the street; filling our lives with funny sayings.

Jamie Beth (7 in just two weeks): Starting 1^st grade with a fantastic teacher; discovering that she loves washing dishes and organizing anything; continuing dance classes; figuring out how to ride a bike without training wheels.

Matthew (10 1/2): Improving snowboarding skills; entering 5^th grade; playing football, and enjoying alternating between quarterback and receiver; going to BYU games with his dad; reading nearly as many books as his mom.

Cissy: Traveling, traveling, traveling...to the Grand Canyon for spring break, to Washington D.C. (by myself!) for sister's dissertation, to San Diego for family reunion, to Idaho to visit brother's family, to Alabama (driving) for sister's wedding; making time to go to more lectures, museum exhibits, and other cultural events; reading some really great books.

Matt: All the trips, especially the Grand Canyon; but since that's essentially copying Cissy's answer, he adds: playing in a golf tournament with his dad; improving his snowboarding skills; being Matthew's basketball coach last winter.

Our Christmas season favorites include: seeing “A Christmas Carol” at the local (live) theater; attending a beautiful Christmas concert at church; reading all our Christmas books again and again; playing carols all day long; and spending Christmas Eve night at Papa & Nana's with all the aunts, uncles, and cousins (36 total--what a party!)

We wish you a peaceful, joyful celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Merry Christmas!

Left to do.

-One more gift for Matt

-One more gift for Matthew

-Christmas cards for immediate family

-Finish up Mom R.'s gift

-Wrap it all

-Help kids wrap gifts to each other

-Buy more stocking treats (note to self: do not buy chocolates early--they are almost gone.)

-Finish baking neighborhood treats

-Deliver neighborhood treats

-Practice songs with Jamie Beth and Dallin in preparation for family program; try to keep both from breaking down in tears of frustration, distraction, or exhaustion.

-Keep watering the tree

-Clean the house (again)

-Watch It's a Wonderful Life

-Be done with it all by Thursday morning, so I can enjoy Christmas Eve bowling without biting my nails

-Add nothing to this list

Supporting local talent.

My sister-in-law developed this handy little letterpress that, after she did a family demonstration, I've decided I could operate with my minimal crafting skills. Enter to win one here.

A trip to remember.

Warning: Extremely long post ahead. May be of interest to immediate family only.

For the past month, my entire brain has been consumed with preparations for my sister Emily's wedding. She and Andrew were married on October 23rd in Mobile, Alabama. We (meaning, I) decided to drive cross-country so that we could take the kids (Matt wanted to ditch the kids and fly, but kindly gave in to my pleas.) I'm happy to say that we made it--happily!

First, a summary. Then two dozen pictures:

Oct. 20 (Tues.)
--Left Orem at 6:20am, only 20 minutes later than Matt planned. Impressive, if I do say so myself.
--Pristine, breathtaking sunrise in Spanish Fork Canyon; it reminded me that I really do love the Utah landscape.
--My first time in Moab did not disappoint. It had precisely the rugged, adventurous flavor I had imagined.
--Lunch break in dusty little Navajo town. Dusty + windy = very short lunch.
--Hotel in Albuquerque was cheap for a reason. Yikes. We changed rooms because the bathroom sink didn't drain at all. I vowed to spend $10 more the next night.
--Pouring rain means the restless kids have no where to run; I took them to the mall for an hour so they could shake those wiggles out.

Oct. 21 (Wed.)
--Rain, rain, rain, all day long. Matt loved it and wished we didn't live in the desert (is my facetiousness coming through?).
--New Mexico and northern Texas are flat...I think. I was too busy reading a good book to glance up very often.
--Veered south and found humidity. Loved it. (But my hair didn't.)
--Dallas threw our GPS for a loop, literally. We actually had to break out the real atlas to manage.
--We had planned to stop in Dallas, but decided we would rather stay in the car for another two hours than let the kids loose in a tiny hotel room. We drove on to Shreveport, Louisiana.
--Stayed in a casino-hotel. Cheap, but nice in a 1980s Las Vegas sort of way. Anyhow, it was clean and spacious and tropical (decor, that is), and I felt good about putting two kids on the floor for the night.

Oct. 22 (Thurs.)
--Crossed the Mississippi, taught the kids how to spell Mississippi.
--Arrived in Daphne, Alabama (just outside of Mobile, near my parents' home) in the early afternoon. Emily had found us a nice, new hotel, and we were greeted by my Aunt Debi, who was first to arrive.
--Happy to see two babysitters (arranged by my mom) who watched the kids while Matt and I attended the wedding dinner. Restaurant on the bay--gorgeous. Huge fake shark impaled on restaurant's roof--weird.
--Met Andrew's charming Southern family. Ate lots of fried Southern food. No vegetable in sight. Delicious and fun all around.

Oct. 23 (Fri.)
--Flurry of activities all day. Many back and forth trips between hotel and wedding venue.
--Girls (including Jamie Beth) spent morning getting manicures and/or pedicures.
--Boys (including Matt who toted our male munchkins) set up tables, chairs, plants, etc.
--I drove with my mom to be at the Bragg-Mitchell Mansion with sister Emily: decor, dressing flower girl (JB), putting bride's hair in rollers, finding 10 minutes to get myself ready (well, I had been "readying" in stages throughout the day).
--Matt showed up with boys clean and dressed. Special kudos to him for managing those three all day.
--Emily and Andrew married: she was radiant, he was adoring. Beautiful.
--Many pictures, lots of food and dancing. Matthew, Jamie Beth, Dallin, and Nathaniel comprised 75% of the children in attendance; they were petted, praised, photographed, and never wanted for indulgent dance partners.
--Clean-up and home (hotel) to bed.
--Actually, not quite to bed: I drove Matt to the airport while my aunt and siblings helped the kids fall asleep (read: told them stories and ran them around in circles so they were hyper when I got home after midnight).

**I will now pause for a break in narration to share some of the pictures. Any really great pictures were taken by Emily's friend. The blurry ones are all mine.

I took exactly two photos of our roadtrip to and from Alabama. Here's the first, at the mall in Albuquerque. It kind of counts as sightseeing...


Emily and her new mother-in-law, being pampered on all sides...


Emily's cute new sisters-in-law...


My mom's first "full set." She might be addicted...


She wanted purple nails; I allowed rhinestones on pale pink nails, in order to avoid clashing...


The Bragg-Mitchell Mansion...

Emily, the splendid bride...


My dad leads Emily down the aisle...


Jamie Beth was thrilled to be flower girl. She made a point of telling people she would be more modest when I sewed her sleeves onto her dress (um, that didn't quite happen in time for the wedding)...


I loved Andrew more when I saw how he looked at his coming bride...


The beaming couple. Aren't they gorgeous?


Note Nate's socks. The shoes lasted for about 30 seconds after the ceremony...


The best picture that Matthew took of us. We have one of just our feet, as well...


Are those my kids having fun together? I'm so glad that was caught on camera...


My brother, Jeremiah, and his wife, Davilyn (we were sad they left baby Tristan in Idaho)...


My parents are fancied up for the occasion. Mom is now accepting invitations to anyplace she can wear her gorgeous formal...


Aunt Debi is an important part of every kid's life (and vice versa)...


New brother-in-law, Andrew, is roped into a "posed candid" photo with my sister, Jennifer, and my brother, Shaun...

He's done for, and so is Nate...

**Back to the summary.

Oct. 24 (Saturday)
--Slept in...way, way in.
--Tidied up the car, said goodbye to my siblings, started driving again.
--Three hours later, we arrived in Panama City, Florida--my birthplace, the place of earliest childhood memories, the place where my aunts and grandparents live.
--Crashed at Grandpa & Grandma's with my mom and Aunt Debi (have I mentioned that my first word as a toddler was "Debi"). Lucky for Grandpa & Grandma that they were staying an extra day away. The energy bouncing off the kids was palpable.

Oct. 25 (Sunday)
--Happy to find LDS church building just blocks away. I planned to stay just for sacrament meeting, but the kids wanted to stay an extra hour for Primary, so we did. (Another way to expend their energy.)
--Hold onto your hats...we then drove another 1 1/2 hours to my cousin's house. Because this was a driving vacation, so why stop? Also, we knew from previous experience that a house with toys, dogs, cousins, and acres of grass and trees was the ticket to sanity for days afterward. My poor car-bound kids...they needed to run.
--Lunch, chatting, relaxing, then "home" again to my grandparents' house.

Oct. 26 (Monday)
--Jamie Beth and I went off to visit Aunt Debi's antique mall. I could live there. I found a couple plates for my wall, several chairs, vintage jewelry and linens...but I brought home only the plates. (See how much money I saved, Matt?)
--We ate at Tom's Hot Dogs next door; I love that place. Whoever thought to put coleslaw on hot dogs is a genius.
--Oh, the boys? They played Great-Grandpa's Wii Fit under my mom's watchful, indulgent care. (By the way, my mom goes by "Elmo" with my kids...Matthew couldn't say "Oma", her chosen name, so it evolved and stuck. Funny, but it works.)
--Packed up, off we go again, back to Mobile area to stay with my parents overnight. We stopped at a beach for 15 minutes of oceanside fun. Except Nate, who slept in his carseat (we don't mess with that) while my mom kept the car in place.
--Arrived at my parents' home in Magnolia Springs. Grandpa and Elmo live in a luxurious RV out in the country. Luxurious for two or three people, but tricky with four munchkins. The kids absolutely loved the novelty of the whole experience.

Oct. 27 (Tuesday)
--A nice (planned) leisurely late start. After laundry, pictures, and packing, my mom led us on a scenic tour (I want to move to the country) to find local pecans and produce. Then we said goodbyes and started home.
--Seven-ish hours to Shreveport and the Diamond Jack Hotel-Casino.

Oct. 28-30 (Wednesday-Friday)
--It's all a blur now. There was one day that Matt's iPhone (my lifeline) didn't work. I was nervous all day; it's a little pathetic that I was so reliant on the iPhone and GPS...very un-pioneer like.
--I had meant to stop and do educational things like museums, mini-hikes, local interests, etc., but it turns out that when I drive for that long by myself I can only think: drive, drive, let's just get there, drive.
--I ate fried okra and a po' boy somewhere in Louisiana. Good deep-fried Southern love. (Jamie Beth is the only one of my kids to agree with that.)
--Albuquerque has lovely mountains. On our way out, it was dark when we arrived and dark when we left, so we had no idea.
--Monticello, Utah was very, very cold. Very cold.
--Music of choice: Singin' in the Rain and They Might Be Giants. We were boppin' to "Good Mornin'" and "Istanbul" for miles and miles.
--Only two DVDs allowed per day, and the kids were still amazingly well-behaved for those 10-12 hour days. Of course, they had their moments--I had my moments, too. But all in all, I love travelling cross-country with those companions.
--But we were so glad to arrive home at 12:30 on Friday. Matt was even home for lunch, so that we had the perfect reunion. It's worth driving by myself just to come home to all that love. Almost.

**Now the remaining pictures.


A few days after the festivities, my cousin, Amy, provided the perfect place for an afternoon respite...



We needed Amy's house o' toys and three acres of space...





My mom and aunt are excellent playmates for the kids (thank heavens, because I'm tired)...

Jamie Beth and Andie, best cousins both times they've met...

Amy's brother (and my first cousin), Chris, is Matthew's age. Built-in buddy--perfect...

Happy to be at Great-Grandma Anderson's, a place of many of my childhood memories...

Two seconds on the beach and they're already barefoot and happy. Me too...

Nothing says autumn like 76-degree weather on a Florida beach...

I need this beach in my backyard...

My cheeseball kids adore my parents...

Remember I said I took two pictures during the driving part? Here's the second, in some stunning Colorado backcountry...

Finis.

Tight-knit

A few months ago I asked a neighbor to teach me to knit. Several washcloths later, I felt ready to try a new pattern. (For those who are not knit-savvy, there are only two stitches in knitting, but myriad variations and patterns.)

I chose another washcloth pattern because washcloths bring a quick sense of accomplishment. I'm feeling empowered now and might try a scarf next.

Then the other night I read an article about a knitter who is using her skill to beautify cities. I love the blend of quirkiness with this old art.

Read about KnittaPlease, and be sure to look at the gallery. Then call me if you need a washcloth.