Packing Potatoes

Brandon had called to give me a review of the phone call he had just finished with our realtor's. They had told him that it was a 98% chance that everything was going to go smooth, and we could basically start packing our bags, they even said they had boxes if we needed some. Packing our bags! I have waited some time to hear this, and it was music to my ears! So when I got off the phone with him I was a tad excited (understatement of the year) I squelched to Teagan, "Yeah pack our bags!". She replied to me "And our potatoes too?".

While I was on the phone she and Taylee were there playing in the kitchen. They had in a short time taken all the potatoes out of their bag and stashed them in a compartment in the step stool under the counter. And apparently these seemed like a pretty important item to bring with us to little Teagan.

Homeward Bound!!??

Well here it is! The home we have been working toward for some time now. We turned in our application for the USDA program we are getting funded through over a year ago. And this particular home we have been chipping away at problem after problem for the past couple of months. Now it has come down to a closing date set for next week.....if all goes as planned! We are trying not to get to excited, there are still a couple of issues that might jeopardize things in these last few days. We are really trying our best just to stay calm and on top of things. So if things work out we will be able to start moving within a week!

One of the views, the Blue Creek Elementry school is just below this hill, right underneath!

The upstairs kitchen

This is the opposite side of the living room fireplace. This side is in the master bedroom.

This is a picture of the main area and kitchen downstiars

Sweet Prayers

I can't help but smile and feel love when I take a peek during prayer and see her folding her arms and bowing her head.

Sisters

Teagan wants so badly to be the big sister, in good ways and bad! Most days it seems all that comes out of my mouth is "Teagan leave her alone", or "Teagan quit it your going to hurt her", or "Teagan please don't take that away from her", or "Darn it Teagan you hurt her".......you get the picture. She is in the middle of ANYTHING Taylee does. Sometimes she's just trying to help, others she's just not being very nice. The other morning in the bath tub, she decided to bite Taylee's finger, pretty hard, and it was simply to just bite her finger. Not trying to hurt her, not being mean........ay yi yi. In the midst of all this big sister bulliness I've been trying harder to acknowledge her good big sister moments. She really does love her little Tay Tay. I think that someday they are really going to be good friends. I'm glad they have each other. I love my own sisters so much, and don't know what I would do without them. Family is an amazing blessing.

No More Papoo!

Yesterday Teagan informed me that she was going to go to bed without her papoo (pacifier). I've always told her that the moon would someday come and take it away from her. When it was time for bed we couldn't find the darn thing for the life of us to put outside for the Moon to "take away". Brandon told her the moon must have already snuck inside and taken it when he had heard of Teagans plan. Teagan replied "But the moon can't come inside!". (I love that thinking the idea that moon could come down on ones porch and snatch something up, but he most certainly couldn't be able to come inside!) After some more unsuccessful searching she settled on the idea that he really must have come inside. So like the big girl she is becoming she went to bed without it and slept ALL NIGHT long!

She woke up this morning and was so proud of herself.

I have been rewarding her for good choices with pinwheel shaped pasta that she is saving in a jar. When she collects 40 pinwheels she gets to go pick out a new DVD. When she woke up this morning Brandon completely filled her jar with the pinwheels for her big girl choice so she gets to go pick out a new DVD today.

She really is a smart cookie! She just does things on her own time. Like when she potty trained it was her that said "Mommy no more diapers". I hope this characteristic will be a strength in her life that will help her to cross the right bridges at the right times, and three cheers for no more papoo!

Rainbow Wishes

Teagan's ballet teacher rewards her class for being good listeners with a stamp on their hand. Yesterday they got a flower stamp that turned out to be a magical one.

In the afternoon I was playing in the living room with Taylee and Teagan was in the kitchen coloring. I focused in on Teagan's self chatter just in time to hear her wishing on her "wish stamp". I heard her sweet little voice say "Oh magic flower stamp I wish for rain to make a rainbow". I didn't say anything to her at that time. Later on that day she informed me herself that she had made a wish on her magic flower stamp for rain to make a beautiful rainbow. Sadly I had to inform her that her wish might not come true for some time because it was way to cold outside to rain (six degrees with snow on the ground to be precise).

I am so ready for spring and have been "wishing" for all the snow to stop and for this icky weather to warm up. Teagan's sweet little spirit doesn't acknowledge ANY limitations to its wishing. Rain for a rainbow in six degree weather seemed like a perfectly legit item to wish for. And with that same idea of no limitations to her wishing, it was such a sweet simple thing to wish for. Its really amazing how much I learn from my girls. I hope I can remember that when there are things I pray for and wish for that they really are always possible maybe just not necessarily at the very time I am asking for them. And I hope I can keep my hearts wishes simple as a sweet rainbow wish!

PRIESTHOOD POWER

So we just all got over being pretty darn sick for a spell. And a few of us had blessings in that time. Yesterday I was sitting at the computer somewhat fazing out the girls playing behind me. Then Taylee started telling Teagan off. I instantly refocused my "super mom" senses and quickly picked up on what Teagan was doing. She had her hands on Taylee's head and was giving her a blessing. She was thanking Heavenly Father for her polly pockets and dolls, and asking him if he could make Taylee sit more still.......... you know the normal everyday blessing content. I couldn't take the opportunity to teach Teagan about the Priesthood as much as I maybe should have because Taylee was a little fed up with Teagan at this point, and I was trying not to laugh. However I did try to get the point across that only men (I used the word Dada's) who have been given the gift of the priesthood can give blessings, and how they are very special. Later in the evening I caught her chasing Jezabel around the house, (poor Rez) trying to put her hands on her head. I asked her what the heck she was doing, she replied she was just trying to give Jezabel a "pretend" blessing. Well good I'm glad I got that one across??

I'm thankful for the everyday opportunities we have to help our children's testimonies sprout and knowledge of the gospel grow. I know I'm not always the best at seizing those teaching moments and pray that I will be more able to do so. I'm so thankful for the priesthood and for the availability of it in our home and family. It truly is a blessing I hold close to my heart!

What if we were all so candid with our emotions?

Taylee 15 Month Report

Taylee had her 15 month check up today. She has been sick off and on this winter again, poor little thing. She's just a tiny girl. She weighed in at 18.14 pounds today. She got her immunizations. In the picture below she is trying to get her pants off so she can get at those band aids. Teagan was showing off for the Dr. the whole time, "Hey Dr. Kelker look at me" as she did a front roll right on the dirty floor.... I had told him about how Taylee has stopped talking for about six weeks now. He said that there is some fluid in her ear, not necessarily an ear infection, and it could be related. So she has an RX to hopefully clear it up and will have a follow up in two weeks. She is so easy going (for the most part!) that even if her ear was bugging her I'm not sure she would show me any real signs of it. Anyway she is just a little sweetheart. She always catches me off guard by how smart she is. She follows directions so well, she loves to "put things where they go". She really loves to twirl around and dance when she hears a good beat. Its So fun to see how different the two of them are in their personalities, and how you can absolutely love each little part of them the same!

Mom Look at Me

I swear Teagans new favorite saying is "Mom Look At Me" and it is never the same show. Always some new face, or position...... She's quite the entertainer. She can't wait till Spring to wear her warmer weather dresses. We finally made a paper chain link for her to count down the days to the official first day of Spring. Its the first thing she does when she wakes up every morning. She's wearing a spring dress here it was so warm this past week, 70 degrees one day! And now the forcast is snow! In like a lion......

Teagans Preschool Train Trip

Laurel set up a fieldtrip for the kids to visit the Train Depot. The kids absolutely loved it. The week before they had the Thomas "I think I can" lesson. Teagan was so excited she could hardly wait to get done with dance to head over to the train!

In this picture we are on the turn table they stick the trains on. It was a lot colder that day than it was predicted to be with extra Montana wind, hence Teagans great hat!

Riding the train was obviously the highlight of the trip. It was super tight quarters in that engine! The kids all (including us audult kids!) got to honk the horn. (Teagan is doing so in the first picture). She was a little afraid of how loud the trains were. Something I hadn't thought about because I grew up around trains. We've always been so close to them. At Mom and Dads house by the beach the whole place would shake sometimes from the train going by. I bet Teagan would get a kick out of that. The engineer taught a safety lesson including the lesson to not put things such as pennies on the track, oh memories! It was a fun trip and Teagan's told many a stranger since then about it!