Psych!

So, I know I am the absolute worst blogger in history. I have 3 crazy kids and never take the time to blog about the funny stuff they do and say. Well, this blog isn't about them.
I had a great weekend. There were many good things about it. I visited my parents, spent time with my sisters (that includes Erica for all of you who don't know how much I love that chica), was ready for church on time, and spent Sunday night just relaxing with Nate. But it wasn't all that that made this an AWESOME weekend...my shows started again.
While all the rest of the world is bemoaning the lack of good television, they missing some of the best shows on television. I absolutely love USA Network. They have Psych (my personal fave) and Monk, and Burn Notice. I mean really people, these shows are great! Every time I watch Psych I wish it lasted longer. I hate when it ends. The comedy is witty and wry. And man, James Roday is hot. But I digress, the point is that both Psych and Monk started this weekend and now I have something on tv to look forward too again. It is great and the whole time I watch there is a big ol' smile on my face.

Holy Randomness Batman!

So, I haven't blogged in a while so I have a ton of tidbits to share. First, my baby said Mama! I know he has been saying Dada for like a month and a half, but HE SAID MAMA! He is so stinking cute, and just so much fun right now. He learns something new almost everyday. I love watching children learn.
Next, school is out, which also happened over 2 weeks ago, but I am just barely coming to terms with it. Actually, it hasn't been that bad...yet. I have tried to make some sort of plans for each day so me and the kids leave the house each day. Mondays are still open, Tuesdays we go to the library for reading time and then to the park for lunch, Wednesday we have tickets to a movie at Provo Towne Centre, Thursday we have the option of going to another movie (which totally sounds lame unless you take into account this one is free and outside it could be like 95 degrees or hotter even), Fridays we are going to try to go to Seven Peaks. So far , so good.

And, last but not least, Emma had a dance recital. She is such a little performer. I know, its hard to believe (ha, ha) but she was completely in her element on stage dancing. Oh, and she graduated from preschool, and lost a tooth. I can't take this all at once. If anyone knows how to keep their baby from growing up, let me know cuz I'm in.

Party Pictures

So, I am way late with this, but here are the pictures from Peter's 1st Birthday Party. It was so great to have friends and family with us to celebrate this. I know that he will never remember it, but it was so fun to celebrate this first year with our friends and family.
Nate's sister Holly and her husband Adam gave Pete this cute little dump truck. Adam had the idea to wrap it in tissue paper. Pete loved it. The paper made this cool sound when he tore into it and he could actually open the present himself. It was a really great idea! So, most of my pictures of Peter opening presents are of him opening that one, because it was the only one he could open himself.

I made him a Cookie Monster cake. I love Cookie Monster, and I figure by next year he will be able to give some opinion, whether taken into consideration or not, about his cake, so this year I got to choose.

Pete gave a great performance with the cake. He began by just checking it out. Then he tentatively tasted it. Then he really dug in and got cake EVERYWHERE. He started to get tired after a while. At one point he was just taking handfuls of cake and smashing it onto his face in the general vicinity of his mouth. Then with hands covered in blue icing and chocolate cake he rubbed his eyes. So truly he was covered in cake. It was a great party and we all took a good rest afterward.

Here is a series to show how much Pete enjoyed his cake.

My Baby is ONE!

I can hardly believe it has been a year since my sweet Peter was born. As I think back over the year there is no way I can possibly put into words how happy that little guy has made me. I just love being his Mom. He is busy, and happy, and intense, and so much fun! The day Peter was born was really touch and go, the doctors were trying to hold off delivery a little bit longer, but his heart rate dropped and I had to have an emergency C-section. Nate made it to the hospital just as I was getting back from the operating room. I was just so glad my sweet little boy had made it and was doing okay. The first hour or two were bumpy, but he did so well. It is hard to imagine he was only 2 lbs 10 oz! Today at his 1 year check-up he weighed in at a whopping 16 lbs. 1 oz. That is over 6 times what he started at. I am just so happy to have him in our little family and that he is doing so well. I really can't imagine life without him. Here are some pictures of our journey from the past year.
I LOVE YOU PETER!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

This is one of the first pictures of Peter. The first day he was on a respirator for a few hours. He was only 14 inches long!This was after they took him off the respirator. His eyes are covered because he was under lights to treat his jaundice. That is a preemie diaper and it still looks gigantic!
This is the first time Jake met his new brother, May 15. Pete was 1 day old.
This was the first time Emma met Peter.

This was Peter's first day out of an incubator. This was Peter's first day home.

Weekend Wrap-up

Some of my blogging friends do a weekend wrap up. So I am trying it, it may be ultra boring. We'll see.
Well, the weekend was a real bummer. My friend Audrey came home from her trip and said she was sick the whole time, so she went and was tested for strep and guess what....it was positive. So, seeing as how we hang out often and our kids play together I guessed that this "cold" I had wasn't actually a "cold" after all. Then Peter woke up Friday with a fever, so we went to the pediatrician, then we made a trip to my doctor. Prognosis: Peter had an ear infection; I had strep. So, I slept all day Saturday. The kids went horse back riding and helped Nate do other stuff I don't remember because I was in a sleepy stupor. Then on Sunday I woke up to take care of the kids while Nate was at meetings. When he came back I went back to sleep and pretty much slept the rest of the day.

The kids enjoyed playing Mario Party 8, and they had their first exposure to the 'Love Bug'. They thought it was hilarious to see a car driving without a driver.
I had an absolute meltdown on Friday because I felt like crap but I wanted to get the house cleaned and dinner made before Nate got home. So, I became Mom-zilla and I made Emma and Jake go outside and play and I cleaned the family room and kitchen. I just hate that I don't keep up on things as well as I would like. There were so many things I wanted to get done over the weekend and I accomplished NOTHING. I logically know that I should not worry about it because I was sick, yadda yadda, but I am still all stressed about it.
So, thats the wrap up. Not so exciting. I'll try for a better entry after next weekend.

Snapshot

I have a couple of Emma funnies to share quickly. I will do an actual post soon, but I just had to throw these in because they have kept me smiling for the past few days.

Emma: Mom, are monster trucks real?
Me: Yes.
Emma: Have you seen one?
Me: I think so, at some point it seems I have seen one. (I don't know for sure, but that seems logical. I have a much worse memory since having kids that is for sure!)
Emma: I think I would like to get a monster truck.
Me: Why do you want a monster truck?
Emma: Because I think they are fascinating.

Yes, she said fascinating. I don't know many 5 year old girls who find monster trucks fascinating. And we aren't even fueling this fire because we never go to monster truck rallies, or frankly anywhere else that monster trucks might hang out.
My second Emma funny. Scene: the Swenson family is traveling in the car talking. I am not sure how the conversation started but we ended up talking about kings.
Emma: Are there really any kings?
Nate: Some countries have kings.
Emma: But we don't have a king, we have lawyers.
Nate and I were both at a loss for words. We finally composed ourselves to the point where we could explain things to her, and she is no longer under the impression lawyers run our country. We are going to let her live in that sweet bliss until she is old enough to realize the truth of the matter on her own.

This is a picture from the last dance recital Emma had. She has her big spring recital coming up on May 9. No, she does not usually wear make-up, just for recitals.

P.S. Congratulations on graduation Holly!!! I think you deserve to stand up with all the other doctoral degree people (I don't know what you call these particular people when its plural, grammar is not my thing). My sis-in-law is going to be a lawyer...You can rule the world!!! (at least according to Emma).

What a week!

The kids had spring break for the week of April 14-18 and I am still recovering. We didn't go anywhere exciting or anything, so I had to think of some fun things for everyone to do. I am so lucky to have my friend Audrey or I swear I would spend my life in my house doing nothing. Not that I am opposed to going out and doing things, but I am not good at coming up with stuff and getting it all set up. So here is the break down of the week, pictures included.
Actually our week started with celebrating Clara's Birthday. It is hard to know what to do for something like that. It is a hard day, but it also is something that brings some peace. So we took flowers, pinwheels, and cake to the cemetery. I have the absolutely sweetest friends. One friend wrote me a sweet note, one friend sent flowers, a couple of friends just gave me a hug and told me they were thinking about me. It is strange to think that other people care enough about me to think about Clara's Birthday. My Mom did something really neat and gave us a couple of children's books that teach good morals and values and tied it into Clara's birthday by saying if we try to do these things and live our lives more Christlike every day we will be able to live with Clara again. I thought that is a neat tradition to do. I also am going to take a little dress and blanket to the hospital for them to give to someone else who is in the same type of situation we were.
This is Jake and Emma looking at the books at the cemetery for Clara's Birthday.

Monday: THE ZOO!!!
What a great day. It was hot, but so much fun. A bunch of us and our kids went to the school. If my friends weren't all so fun 17 wild kids would make me crazy. It was great because my friend Rachel who I don't get to see nearly enough met us there with her kids. Emma and her daughter Katelyn were great friends, so it was fun to see that when they got together it was like not a day had passed. It made for a long, tiring, hot day but well worth our time.
Here is a picture of a bunch of the kids taking a break on the rock ledge.

Tuesday/Wednesday: Grandma and Grandpa McGuires
We spent a couple of days at my parents. My kids had a ball. My Dad has a Playstation 3, I know he is hilarious, so needless to say Jake was in video game heaven. Also, my sister Nat and her husband Jeff have moved in with my parents so we got to see them. We played, watched movies and saw Ju and Brack, and Bob, Erica, and Brody. It was great. We went to a little farm and saw some sheep, ducklings and chicks. It was a fun trip.
Jake petting one of the baby chicks.

Thursday: Jumpin' Jacks!
Did my kids love this place or what. No, I didn't take pictures. There was no way to keep up with them long enough to catch them on film. They ran and played so hard that they were absolutely sweating by the time I said it was time to go.

Friday: We went to the park and had lunch with some friends. I love doing things like this for the fact that the kids are entertained and I can actually sit and talk with my friends. We have to periodically stop talking and chase down a child who has snuck a cell phone or snacks or whatever, but overall it is such a great thing. I am so glad that our weather is getting good enough to go to the park more often.