Traditions

I loved reading Kierste's and Andee's family traditions; it is fun to see how many are the same as ours. Here is a list of our family traditions during the holidays.

1. Putting up the decorations the day after Thanksgiving, or as soon as possible after Thanksgiving.

2. Planning and making handmade Christmas cards. Crazy, too much work, but I love it.

3. Taking 5 million pictures that look like this.

just to get one that looks like this and can be included in the Christmas card.

4. If we are in Utah, Christmas shopping the day after Thanksgiving with the girls to see how close we can get to being done in one day.

5. Visiting Santa. I love the horrible pictures we end up with most years. If at least one kid isn't crying, why bother. When we lived up North, we also took a yearly cruise to the North Pole to see Santa. It was a family favorite!

6. Advent calendars. We have a beaded tree ornament, and a felt Christmas tree that is as close to the one my Mom has that I could find. We also have a new one from my mom that has scriptures for each day.

7. Christmas books every night. If you need a fantastic book for Older kids and adults alike, check out my SIL's blog. The Red Ranger Came Calling is mine and Tyler's absolute favorite. Jack liked it this year too. We have a great collection, because my mom gives a new wonderful Christmas book every year. We love that!

8. On Christmas Eve, we open a new pair of PJs (Ballard tradition) and a new ornament for each of us every year. We also have all of the ornaments that Tyler got every year of his life with his parents. It has been a fun tradition to adopt from his family.

9. Christmas Morning, we have pull-aparts and juice. Yummy

10. After Christmas we go to Utah to visit our family. We always have a Ballard/Edwards party with my mom's sister's family. This party is full of traditions that have been going on since we were kids. Some we still do, and some we just remember. This party used to be the Whitney Party on Christmas day at my Grandparent's house. We always ate and opened presents from Grandma and Grandpa. Aunt Sandra used to make the girls night gowns and matching doll night gowns. They were amazing and now she does it for the little girls. I am as excited to see them open them as they are. Grandpa also gave us an envelope from the bank with a little money in it, and Grandma gave us each a box of orange sticks. We would wait for a call from my Aunts Barbara and Gayleen when they lived in Florida and we would pass around the phone and visit. When I was a little girl, this was my favorite part. I felt so grown up talking "long distance". Funny how cell phones have changed that concept. We would also get boxes from Barbara from Florida. One year we all got Florida t-shirts. They were our favorite shirts that year. Then we play the game where you wrap presents up really tight with lots of duct tape and newspapers and roll dice to get a chance to open them up fast before the next person rolls a double or seven or 11. At the end we have a few rounds where you are allowed to steal presents from each other. This game was fun when we were kids and still just as much fun. Our gifts are all $5 but there always seems to be something that everyone fights for. For fun, we have a separate game for the kids, so that they don't cry when Uncle Don or one of the other grown ups steal their gifts. We spend the rest of the night visiting. Our family has grown to include lots and lots of little grand kids. I like to imagine what Grandpa and Grandma Whitney would think to see how their family has grown so much. I am so grateful to my mom and Aunt Sandra for continuing this party. It is a really big part of my holiday memories. We are having this party in the church gym this year, because we have grown so much - we definitely would not fit in Grandma's living room anymore.

11. While we are in Utah, Tyler's family also has a family party with his brother, sister and their families. Luckily his brother has a few girls, because the rest of the grand kids are all boys. This party can get silly and loud. The favorite game for the kids is digging through a big bag full of newspaper and wrapping paper to get toys and treats. We are still changing this party around to find our favorite traditions. We went bowling last year and are going to try that again this year.

I love the holidays. Hope all is well with all of you. Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and all of that stuff!

Pillow Talk

Sam crawled into bed with me. His hair was all messy, he had puppy breath, and he put his hands on my cheeks and said, "I wuv you mommy. I don't want you to get buried in the temple."

Guess the teacher in nursery needs to make sure the kids know she is saying married and not buried. Man when he is not being naughty, he sure can be sweet.

fla la la la la

For family night this week, we went and saw Santa at the mall. It happened to be pet night and I swear the dogs people brought were the size of horses. The kids loved it. I could not believe that Sam was not nervous at all, and Logan didn't cry either. Jack colored Santa a picture and brought paper and a pencil to ask for his autograph. I have given up having all three boys smile at the same time. This was the best we got and I love it. It shows what it is really like - Jack not looking straight ahead pulling strange faces, Sam not smiling pulling strange faces, and Logan not being sure if he wants to laugh or cry. Perfect!

Today was the 2nd grade Christmas program at school. Tyler is on a plane to Nebraska, so I took Logan and Sam all by myself. (Please send chocolate) We actually sat next to some friends, so they helped hold Logan and keep him busy while I held onto Sam. It was standing room only, and I was lucky to get one seat for all of us. Jack was darling. He waved and smiled before it started, but he was very serious when the program began. He sang with all of his heart and looked so handsome up there with the other kids. It was an interesting program with Christmas numbers from all over the world. They had drums and maracas. It was fun to watch the kids getting into the beat. The 5th grade orchestra also played. They were very excited too. Sam liked the music, and Logan ate his sock. Good times. Sorry it is a bad picture, I didn't bring my good camera.

Cannons and things

Jack really likes to donate things to charity this year. He picked out a great gift for Toys for Tots, and begs for money to put into the red kettles. Now if only, he could use his own money and not all of mine... Maybe next year.

The reason for the post is this gem. Tyler gave Jack and Sam each a quarter to put in the kettle. We were walking to the van when Jack said, "Why do those bell ringer people give all of the needy people cannons and things?" Tyler looked at me puzzled and I started figuring it all out. See to a 7 year old, the logical meaning of Salvation Army would be an Army that helps the needy people save themselves from war. I quickly explain to Tyler, and we tried really hard not to laugh at Jack. Tyler explained the other meaning of salvation and I explained the type of help that was given with the donations gathered. Jack's response was given with great disappointment, "you mean it has nothing to do with wars?" Luckily, the Marines are out in uniform gathering toys for tots. He knows all about Marines and after donating his toy to a Marine that looked like he was 14 and half my size, Jack says, "Mom, Marines are tough!" Gotta love little boys.

Too Soon!

Look what the little monkey figured out this week. Doesn't he look so proud of himself? I am not ready for this. He also found the dog dishes and had a little snack - GROSS! I have some serious baby proofing to do this weekend. Logan will be 8 months old on the 24th. He is way ahead of any of my other babies as far as mobility is concerned. He is very independent and wants to be down to get into his own trouble as long as he can see me. He does not like to be left in a room alone and will follow me out as quickly as he can. It's like having two puppy dogs in the house right now.

Please ignore the snotty nose. Logan and Sam both have little colds this week. So far, nothing serious.

Apart from the snot, how fun is waking up to this little guy!?! Even if I did get in at 3 am after watching New Moon with 35, way too old to be so excited when a teenage boy takes of his shirt, women in my ward. I will have to make another post on my Twilight experience soon. It has definitely been memorable.

Global Warnings

You know when you pick your kids up from school and ask them what they did today, and they tell you that they can't remember. Well sometimes Jack remembers and this is what he has shared so far this week.

Mom trees make air...giggle giggle
Homework is made of trees...giggle giggle giggle
Homework causes global warnings! laughing so hard he snorts.


(learning about Pilgrims)
It was so fun today, we had a play.
My part was awesome.
We got to make up our parts, well the other boys made it up, but I didn't argue because I loved my part.
(what was your part)
I got to hold this guy down while three other Pilgrims shot him.


Did you know Marijuana was a plant that grows in fields or houses and stuff?
It is a drug and it is really bad like that crystal meth stuff.
(that's right Jack, so if anyone ever tries to give you a plant or pills or anything like that you should not accept them)
What if it is a Venus Fly Trap?
Mom, if someone gives me a Venus Fly Trap, can I please have it?
(sure)
What if someone comes into my room and they touch it because they don't know it is a Venus Fly Trap then it bites their finger off? That would be cool. Hmmm, I wonder how it swallows the finger.
(so glad he got so much out of his health class, hope he doesn't accept Marijuana from someone who tells him it is a Venus Fly Trap)

Fun, Cold Weekend

I think Jack prayed in the snow. He has been waiting and waiting for snow. Finally Friday night it came. When we woke up on Saturday there was a dusting of snow covering everything and it was COLD! We had some friends from Post Falls come down to visit us, so that they could go to the Boise State/University of Idaho football game. Tyler was sad to cancel his fishing trip that was planned with a friend from the ward, but his brilliant wife suggested he take Dan fishing before the game. They left at 7 am - did I mention that it was COLD. They fished for several hours and then bundled up for the football game at 1:00. While the men-folk were gone, Cyndi, her daughter Summer, the little monsters, and I went to the Craft Warehouse to find a project. We had fun being creative and catching up. Cyndi left 4 of her 5 kids at home with their Grandma. Dan and Cyndi have great kids that I miss very much. I got to know each of them in primary and scouts. Each have provided me with memories that I will never forget. She has a Sam who used to tell me about a rock band that he was starting. I think he was in 3rd grade at the time, and he wondered how much I would pay to come see him. Then he showed me his notebook of the songs he wrote and sang them all to me. Melody (Jack's age) talked to me like we are best friends, we shared lots of secrets, and I loved it. Jarom and I had great talks during hikes at scout camp, and Cayson tricked me out of chocolate for going potty even though in reality he was totally potty trained. Miss those guys!

When Tyler and Dan returned from the game, they were cold and tired, but grinning ear to ear to tell us all about their fishing adventures. I figured I would post their bragging pictures for all to see. We sure had fun, and we love visitors. hint hint

Dan

Best Parenting Advice Ever...

Feel free to pass this along to your friends.

Do you have too many toys in your house? Are you tired of your kids leaving their toys all over the floor? Well I have a solution for you!

Buy one of these

After a few weeks of tears, your children will start picking up the toys that they would like to keep and only those they don't care about will remain on the floor.

When your children are in tears over a toy that has been consumed or at least terribly chewed up, you will have the opportunity to have deep meaningful conversations with them. They go something like this.

"Wow, you are right, Superman is dead. That is so cool; Charlie's teeth must be made of kryptonite."
or

"No, you don't need to throw that star wars toy away; it looks like he really was in the Clone Wars now. He must have survived a great battle with the droid army."

(Your kids will think you are so cool, because you are up on all of their interests.)

You can also teach them about science.

"I guess this is one more theory to add to how the dinosaurs became extinct."

or

"Yes, I can see your striped underwear in Charlie's poop. I guess a dog his size cannot digest a whole pair of underwear."

And apparently, your kids will also learn how to give service. (bonus)

Don't walk, RUN to your nearest pet shop and pick up one of these invaluable parenting tools!

Stay tuned for my next post on how to "antique" your new furniture.

Happy Birthday Tyler

It was Tyler's birthday on Saturday. His parents came to town for the weekend and we had lots of fun. Tyler and I even got to have a date on Friday with NO KIDS. We went to a Thai restaurant, so that Tyler could have sushi and other yummy things.

On Saturday we opened presents, ate at Red Robin with the whole family, and then came home for homemade apple pie. It was fun to have Tyler's Boise Aunts and Uncle come join us. Too bad, I did not think to take a picture of everyone. I did take a picture of Tyler and the boys while he was opening presents. Can you tell how excited Jack and Sam get when someone has a birthday? I also took a picture of the pie. Tyler requests my homemade apple pie every year instead of a cake. I keep making it because he tells me over and over again how wonderful it is and it makes me feel all happy and domestic.

Thanks for being such a great husband and dad - we love you!

Big Mama

I definitely have developed a thick skin by being the mother of little boys. Even when the comments are innocent, sometimes they still leave a little bruise.

Sam: "You my big sister."
Me: "I'm not your sister, I am your mom."
Sam: "You my Big Mama, and you Logan's Big Mama too."

Jack said something about caffeine, and I told him that it had been a whole week since I had any caffeine. His reply...
"Oh, that is why you have been so grumpy."
NICE!!!!
He then came up with an idea. He said that I could have a sticker chart and every time I didn't drink Coke, I could put a sticker on the chart. When I had it filled out, I could get a prize. I asked him what the prize was and he said, a great big Coke. He was a little concerned that he might not have the money to buy me that Coke though.

p.s. I really was grumpy, but only for one day.

Proud Primary Moment

For sharing time, the kids were playing charades. Their topic was how they could serve their family. The kids had already acted out reading to a sibling, playing Legos with a brother, raking leaves, etc. There was time for one more kid, and Sister K picked Jack W's stick. I stiffened, a little nervous and a little excited to see what he would do. If nothing else, I knew he would put his all into the acting out part. Then in what seemed to be slow motion, Jack started softly barking like a dog, squatted down and made a grunting noise, and then acted out shoveling up dog poop. Not once, not twice, but over and over again. I was laughing so hard, out of embarrassment, that I had tears streaming down my face. All of the adults were looking at me. One of the little girls in my class started copying him. I had to tell her to stop, and that it was not funny.

You have to love Sister K though, she keeps a straight face and a with a smile says, "Wow Jack, that is a big responsibility. Children, when you have a dog they have to go to the bathroom outside, and if you don't clean it up then you can't play outside can you? Jack serves his family by cleaning up after the dog so that they can play in their back yard."

Jack goes back to his seat and continues with the sound effects even though I am sure lasers were shooting out of my eyes across the room into his brain!

Seriously people, can't we cancel church the day after Halloween? I have never seen 100 kids in the same room with a sugar high. It was NOT FUN!

Pumpkin Patches - a look back

Our family went to the pumpkin patch last weekend. This has become a tradition that Jack looks forward to all year long. He loves thinking about the corn mazes, figuring out what kind of pumpkin he will find, and planning how he will carve it. I thought it would be fun to put together some pictures of him with his pumpkins over the last 8 years. (note: We didn't go to the pumpkin patch when he was 7 mo - 2002, and for some reason we missed it in 2007.)

I did not get a really cute picture of the kids all together, but here is one just so you can see how cute they were that day.

Just that kind of boy...

Logan is seven months old today, but this post is dedicated to Sam who has thoroughly "entertained" me over these last seven months. No wonder I am so tired, but how can anyone resist that grin!
He is a...
1. Binkie Stealing
2. Cowboy Hat Wearing
3. Crib Climbing
4. Pants-less Puddle Making
5. Tail Swinging (We bought this for our trip to Yellowstone, because I kept having visions of Sam falling into a geyser. Sam loved it, because he could swing the tail.)
6. Fully Clothed Sneaky Swimming
7. Baby Swinging
8. Baby Hat Wearing
9. Stroller Hiding
10. Light saber Fighting (He has three real light sabers, but apparently Lincoln Logs are just as good)
11. Box Playing (again, why do we buy real toys?)
12. Marker Stealing
kind of boy!

The October Incident

This year marks the 15th anniversary of what Tyler and I have always referred to as the October Incident. As soon as the air starts to cool, and there are signs of autumn all around, I can not help but remember this day in our dating history. Here's the story. Tyler had been home from his mission since December of 93/going to Weber State, and I was attending Dixie College for the 3rd year. (Yes I had already graduated and it was a two year school back then. I was just too scared to go to a big girl school at that time. Whole other story!) The Sadie Hawkins dance was just around the corner and since I was a member of the student council I had to go. At this time, the missionary I had sent off was due home in March of 95 and I was not really interested in dating. Kierste (BFF) and I were discussing our options and had planned to ask out some of our friend Matt's roommates. Kierste ended up asking Rick and they lived happily ever after - another story. A few weeks before the dance Tyler told me that he was coming down to SUU in Cedar and wondered if he could stop in. It was perfect - I told him that he had to come to the dance with me. A little history on Tyler and me. We met when we were in Junior High. I was 14 and he was 15. This is what we looked like.

We "went together" then dated until my Junior year and Tyler's Senior year. Tyler has been my best friend for a long time. I wrote to him on his mission and spent a lot of time with him when he came home, but nothing ever seemed to happen, so I figured we were just friends. I figured I could introduce him to Kierste and set them up.

Tyler agreed to go to the dance with me and I was relieved that I didn't have to ask anyone else. The night started out normally. We were happy to see each other and didn't stop talking. Then we got to the dance and innocently enough we held hands to go out to the dance floor. And that is when it happened. Electricity! Years of feelings came rushing back to both of us. We spent all night talking. We kissed for the first time after many years, and then Tyler went home. Poor Kierste and Cathi had to listen to me cry and dissect every minute of the night. By Thanksgiving we had said I love you, by Christmas we had talked about marriage, and on January 14th we got engage. I moved home after Spring Semester. We were married the next June. Our own happily ever after.

Sadie Hawkins 10/15/1994

3 hours

In three hours I am loading these boys into the van

and driving them to Utah where we are going to visit these people.

(sorry if you aren't in the pic - it is the one that has the most people in it)

and I am going to eat here as much as possible!

I CAN'T WAIT!!!!!

Six Months Old Logan Boy!

I cannot believe it; Logan is six months old today. Logan is a sweet little social thing. He loves to be on the ground exploring everything around him. He rolls from front to back and back to front, and he just started sitting up and crawling a little bit. He has funny old man hair with some pretty bad cowlicks. I still can't decide what color his hair is going to be. He loves oatmeal cereal, and sweet potatoes. He loves to talk and squeal, and he is very ticklish. He is pretty intense and can go from totally happy to a magnificent temper tantrum in 2.2 seconds. He is a fantastic sleeper and eater. I can not imagine my life with out this sweet little boy. When I left the room this morning, he started to whine ma ma ma ma. That is the first time I have heard him make an M sound. Life is good.

A little note about this shirt. When Logan was born, Sam made up this song. - Jingle Bells, Batman Smells, Yogan is Super Duper. We have called Logan Super Duper ever since. Both Sam and Logan have this shirt, and when Logan wears it, Sam has to wear it also.

Love Mom

Dear Sam, No, I will not leave that baby at the zoo. Some day I hope you will understand. And P.S. That baby's name is Logan!

Dear Jack, I know that it is NOT FAIR that when you are at school I took Sam to McDonalds/bought him a treat/bought him a toy.

Dear Sam, Stop telling Jack and Dad that we went to McDonalds to get a coke and a cookie.

Dear Weight Watchers, I don't care how many points is in a McD's cookie and a coke. Some things are necessary.

Dear Tyler, yes I am serious please stop by Little Caesars to pick up some cheese pizzas. No I don't want to know how many times we have had Little Caesars this week/month/year, and hey guess what is not hot and ready at our house - dinner!

Dear Logan, I am sorry that I fed you peas. I don't like them either. Hope you are happier with squash next week.

Dear Jack, No I will not give you a prize to go potty, you have been potty trained for 4 years now, and yes I know it is not fair.

Dear Sam, I will buy you a CAR if you will stop pooping in your pull ups!

Love,
Mom
XOXOXOXO

I hate shopping carts!

It's true, I hate shopping carts. There is not a design of shopping cart that works for me now that I have three kids. Let me explain... A standard configuration goes like this. The baby's car seat is in the front, Sam is in the back, and Jack is walking beside. This starts out OK with just a few "Jack, don't touch that, Jack keep up, Jack stop hanging on the cart" warnings, but I can live with that. Then the groceries start to pile up on top of Sam until I hear Sam's famous phrase, "Mom, I stuck!" Good thing I was already planning to buy the bread he was sitting on and the box of cereal he opened. The only thing I can do at this point is remove him and let him walk. - Disaster. He is far too easily distracted by shiny things.

Speaking of being distracted by shiny things, we had Stake Conference last week. We had two ladies in the front translating the meeting into sign language. I found this very distracting and started day dreaming. I convinced myself that I could understand everything they were signing. Then I realized that it was because I could hear the speaker. On that note, Jack told me that he has a new talent. He can translate Chinese. He learned this when he walked past a sign at a Chinese restaurant that said Open. Underneath it there was Chinese writing. He determined that the Chinese writing said Open. He also said that the Chinese writing underneath the fortune cookie wrapper said fortune cooking. I told him that it might say, "Sugar for dumb American." He said, "Mom you do not know how to translate Chinese."

OK back to shopping carts. I decided that it would be easier if I carried the baby in my Moby wrap and put Sam in the front seat with the seat belt. This causes another problem - he can reach the baby with both his feet and hands, and would not stop touching, patting, and otherwise annoying both of us. Sam loves the car version of a grocery cart, but gets bored half way through and sticks hands and other body parts out the windows and dashboard. Knocks over groceries and always ends up with something that he has swiped from the shelf that I do not discover until checking out. When I saw the giant cart with the two seats in front, I thought my problems had been solved. This way the baby's seat fits in the front and the two boys can sit on their own little seats facing each other. Our trip started off OK until the boys starting arguing about something. Then Sam hauled off and punched Jack in the face. This is what follows. (By the way, I had promised treats for good behavior.)

Jack - Mom, Sam hit me in the face.
Sam - unusually quiet will not look at me.
Me - Sam, you cannot hit Jack in the face. You guys have not been good on this grocery trip and we will not be getting a treat this time. (trust me, the hitting in the face was just the last straw.)
Jack - starts bawling and saying I want a treat over and over again.
Sam - starts bawling and saying I want a treat over and over again.
Logan - has been crying for several minutes anyways.

I take the walk of shame up to the checkout stand, pay for my groceries, try not to make eye contact with other parents, and swear that I will never take three kids grocery shopping by myself again.

I hate shopping carts!

First Day of School 2009

It is a big year for the Wiricks! Jack is in second grade at Prospect Elementary. His teacher's name is Mrs. Palmerton. He had a great first day yesterday. He knows 3 kids in his class, and he is very excited to sit next a girl who speaks Spanish and English. He gets to earn pretend money that he can use to buy prizes from his teacher and he thinks that will be very cool. He said that 2nd grade is going to be awesome. He also left his folder at school, so our very first day of returned assignments - big fat F. He doesn't think he will get in trouble. I tried to brace him for it, so if it happens he doesn't cry.


Sam started preschool today. We had an open house yesterday; we went together and found his cubby and met the other kids. They are all from our ward, and his teacher is Miss Shelly who is also in our ward. She has been teaching preschool from her home for a long time. Everyone raves about her. Sam has been begging to go to school like Jack, so I was happy to find something that works with our schedule. He is the youngest in his class; it will be fun to see how much he picks up. Today he was picked up by Jenna's mom - apparently carpooling is almost as exciting as going to school. He gave me a quick hug and ran to the car. He was not worried about leaving me at all. When he got back, he ran up the drive way, grinning his Sammy grin, and gave me a big hug. Then he told me everything he did: play with play dough, color, play, snacks, and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I was surprised to know that she feeds them lunch (I should read the paper work more thoroughly). He even had a dry pull-up and went potty as soon as he got home. Before school, I told him that I needed to take his picture outside. He was thrilled to be "yike Jack". You can see that he is not bashful for the camera. He pulled out some great poses. The final pose was his "fire power" pose from Night at the Museum. What a cheeser. He also convinced me that he had to have a new backpack for school and insisted that he wear his "preschool pants" today instead of shorts.

I am looking forward to a drama-free, happy, peaceful, and fun year. I will let you all know how that goes. :)

Not to be out done by his big brothers, Logan figured out how to roll from back to front today on a flat surface. Guess where I found him...Under my bed. Goodbye days of laying him on a blanket and walking away for a few minutes, I will miss you.

A conversation with Jack

Sorry for a double post today, but I want to make sure I share the conversation I had with Jack yesterday. There was a commercial on TV about how many licks it takes to get to the tootsie roll in a tootsie pop. I said, "That is a commercial from when I was a little girl." Jack responded, "Oh, that is why it looks like it is from the olden days." I stood speechless, so he continues..."Wait, so they have really had that commercial for like 198 days." Still not sure what to say, so he keeps on going... "Weren't you born in 1950?" OK, I had a response to that. I told him no, I was born in 1974. He says, "oh yeah right, 1950 was when the dinosaurs were on the earth." I was almost in a puddle laughing so hard. I told him that 1950 was about the time Grandma was born. He said, oh cool and walks away. I am still pretty shocked to know that I lived in the olden days.

One more funny thing from Jack... At back to school night last night he asked his teacher if they were going to have field trips. She said yes, they have one in the fall and one later in the year. He responds, "Oh last year I didn't get to go on a field trip because I didn't get here until Obama became the president." I was about to explain, but she understood completely and said, "Oh did you move in late last year?" Isn't that funny that he remembers the time of our move because of Obama taking office. One of the first school activities he had here was a little booklet about Obama's childhood and background. He was really into the elections last year and asked me a lot of questions. I am just hoping he doesn't end up being my little Alex P. Keaton. (How many of you get that? :))

Mommy Fun Fridays

Last summer we started a fun tradition called Mommy Fun Fridays. We made a darling flower pot with popsicle stick flowers that had ideas for activities that we could do on Fridays. It was so fun that we continued it this year. I was a little too busy for a cute flower pot, so we put our ideas on slips of papers in a Ziploc bag - I was the only one disappointed with the lack of cuteness. Some Fridays didn't work out because of summer camp, swimming lessons, or vacations. Sometimes we had to cancel because of bad behavior, but today was the last Mommy Fun Friday of 2009. Jack was determined to make it work out. He woke right up and made his bed, cleaned up toys, got dressed, helped Sam get bathed and dressed, and was generally sweet to everyone in the house. Instead of drawing out the bag I gave him a choice of what he wanted to do. We had to finish last minute school shopping for lunches and the final odds and ends, so whatever we did had to allow for a trip to Walmart. He decided that he wanted to go shopping and then go to McDonalds and play for a "long time". Going "in" to McDonalds is a big deal, because I usually avoid it at all costs. It was packed today, so we had to eat in the regular dining room. Both boys ate every bite of their lunch and waited very patiently while I put the decals onto their Lego Racers. Luckily, the play area cleared out a bit, so we moved in. I let the kids play for 45 minutes. That is a LONG time for me (I had a Coke to make myself feel better). I made them use Purel and Jack told me that, "Dad never makes me do this, and I don't get sick!" After 45 minutes, my boys came right over and got their shoes on without any fits. It was like a dream... Then Jack suggested we walk across the street to Baskin Robins. Being the funnest mommy around today, I agreed and tried to look the other way while they ate their gross bubble gum ice cream (I had a chocolate/peanut butter ice cream cone to make myself feel better). I say gross, because seriously - it is disgusting to watch them spit out each piece of gum onto a napkin so that they can chew it later. They were pink from forehead to chin. We are home now, so I can do some of my Friday chores. Jack is watching TV, Logan is sleeping, and Sam is trying to nap. Here is a list of some of the other Mommy Fun Fridays this year:

• Discovery Center


• Zoo


• Picnic at the park


• Splash Park


• Craft (they got to pick a kids crafts from Michaels and we came home and did them together)


• Swimming


• McDonalds play land

Tonight, Tyler is going to take the boys camping. It might just be in the back yard, but they are going to figure something out. Jack said, "I would prefer to go to the woods." Tyler is going to do the best he can depending on when he gets home from work tonight. I love the last weekend before school starts. It is so exciting!

Cereal Time

On Monday Logan and Sam had a doctor's appointment. Jack got to stay home with Morgan the babysitter all by himself - LUCKY. Sam had his 3 year old check up. He loved all of the attention he got from Dr. Lanuza. She asked him draw a circle and he did it proudly and said, "I draw you a twi-angle?" She said sure and he drew her a very extensive drawing that might have/kinda resembled a triangle. She also had him run up and down the hall, jump over her papers, and hop on one foot. He really felt like he was getting away with something and did all of this with the biggest grin I have ever seen. He got a clean bill of health and she said that his feet are totally normal. She expects no future need for any intervention. I was relieved. He also got a shot which he calls "Shoots". He was very brave, because he was going to get a spider man band aid. He remains in the 60% for weight and 75% for height. He is old enough now that they do not have to measure his head - enough said.

Logan was there for his 4 month check up even though he was really 4 1/2 months. He was also in the 60% for weight and 75% for height. A proud moment for the Wiricks - Logan's head is only in the 60%. It is so good to be on the charts :). She was very impressed with his development. He is very social and is rolling from stomach to back. Normal stuff for a 4 month old except that he has learned how to caterpillar crawl and can get all over his room if I put him on the floor. His reflux is controlled well by his meds and he will continue with them until a re-evaluation at 9 months. She cleared him to start cereal which is the real inspiration for this blog entry. I was so excited, because Jack and Sam loved their cereal. Guess what Logan thinks of it.

Nap Strike!

Sam is on a nap strike, and nothing I do has been succesful in getting him to nap or even to have some quiet time in his room. When I tell him it is time for a nap he says, "I no yike-a to take a nap." The other day he was playing in the living room while I worked and it got way too quiet. I went to investigate and this is what I found. He really still needs to take a nap!

I have a blog!

Today is a great day to start a blog. I was having a hard time thinking of something to write -especially since I am just giving into peer pressure, so that I can be as cool as my sisters in law. Sam took care of everything for me. While I was hiding out at the computer, he was working on creating a fantastic blog entry introduction for himself and our family. Today is his 3rd birthday. He requested a Ben-10 cake, and I came up with a lame idea that thrills him and makes Martha Stewart cry. As I typed, he came to me screaming and with a very dirty face. I thought he ate dirt, but when I followed him into the kitchen, it was obvious that eating dirt was not the crime that had been committed today. I guess he liked his cake. It looks like 3 will not be a whole different than 2. Pray for me!

p.s. It is official, I have a blog and I don't know how I feel about it.