Rockbien

2011-12-04T20:36:00.001-08:00

Pinterest has been my new addiction this school year. I have found some amazing craft ideas, projects, activities, pretty much everything I do now is found on there. I LOVE the website. I am always looking for ways to save money on groceries. Pinterest has a link to an ebook "2012 Family Guide to Groceries Under $250 a Month". It would be worth the $3.49 to buy this ebook. Even if it saves me $20 a month. . .I have to get this book.

Catching Up

2011-11-06T17:21:00.000-08:00

A new school year, a new post. I am not very good at keeping up on my posts. School started and the kids are at Hatikvah Charter School. They love it there. I love the curriculum, the atmosphere, the staff, everything. The kids are learning Hebrew. Ashleigh speaks almost fluently. I am so proud of her. Matt and Ash talk to each other in Hebrew all the time. It is great practice for them, and they have their little secrets they tell each other (great bonding).
I am PTO president at the school (I volunteered last year, and now I can't get away from it). I really enjoy doing it, even though it is stressful at times. I get to be with the kids at school a lot, and the school doesn't mind that I bring Garrett and Desiree. The other day was picture make-ups. I brought the babies and Garrett got away from me at one point. One of the teachers came up and said he had wandered into her room and was sitting with the kids during story time. What school does that for you? Awesome!!! I am also learning a LOT about time management, organization, opening up and talking to people. This is a great experience and I am glad I took the job.
Aaron is still at Merck right now. He loves being scientist. I still get to be home with the kids which has been the biggest blessing for our family.
My biggest struggle right now, I think, is Ben. I love him so much, but he is a tough cookie. He goes to full day kindergarten right now. The first few weeks were tough. I had to drive him because he wanted to be with mommy all the time. We finally got him to get on the bus (so helpful). He has some obedience issues at school (he does at home also). I think part of it is that he never was in preschool. He is still adjusting. I will offer treats to the kids for getting up and helping me clean, Ben will say, "well, I don't want a treat". And he will just sit and watch everyone clean. Or, if I actually get him up to help, he crawls around, grabs 1 or 2 items to put away, and that is all. I am trying really hard to give him more positive attention during the day. I hope this will help. I don't want him getting the negative attention from doing 'bad' things.
Aaron has bought an RC car for Ash, Matt, and Ben. The kids LOVE going to a big parking lot and racing the cars around (they go up to 35mph). Aaron just ordered one online for himself. We even bought a clear cover and painted it pink for Ash. She was really excited about that one. The cars are nice because when something breaks on them, Aaron can fix it (and the kids get to help for the most part). It has been a GREAT bonding activity. We all go together and just let Garrett and Desi run around.

Summer Fun

2010-07-22T08:44:00.001-07:00

I don't have pictures because I am terrible at remembering my camera. We are having an exciting summer so far. We have visited Meme and Pops, Uncle Kenzie got engaged, we have visited our favorite splash park, gone peach picking, visited Crystal Springs (our local water park), played video games, had late nights hanging out together, joined our library's reading club, and have been learning about other countries. We are really enjoying this summer.

I am my mother

2010-03-16T06:54:00.000-07:00

Over the years, I have noticed things about myself that scream my mom. I am not complaining. . .about everything. As I get older, and my relationship with her has grown, I have been able to learn more about her. In learning more, I am able to recognize more things about me that come from her. Last Sunday, I realized just how much I am really like her. Being 8 months pregnant, I am exhausted all the time. We were sitting in sacrament meeting, and Aaron had to take Garrett out because he was tired. I was left with Ash, Matt and Ben. I pulled out a few notebooks, and pens for each of them to draw. Ashleigh asked if she could draw on my arm. I said, "sure." I figured whatever would keep them happy, would keep me happy. One by one, the three of them started drawing on my arms. By the end of sacrament, my arms were COVERED, but I got some peace and was able to close my eyes.

Later in the week, I desperately needed a nap. I hadn't been sleeping at night due to the pregnancy. I needed to calm the kids down, so I put a movie on the tv, curled up on the couch with Garrett, put Ben in my nest, and handed him a pen. When I woke up, my leg was covered.

This is something we used to do all the time with my mom. We would draw on her at church to keep ourselves busy, we would sit in her nest at home and draw while she took a nap. I have officially become my mother. And, I couldn't be happier (all the negatives included).

An hour of my day. . .

2010-01-28T20:09:00.000-08:00

I spent an hour trying to keep the kids busy. . .First, we made forts in the living room. When the kids started fighting, I turned on YouTube and we started dancing. Here are a few pics.

Matt's slice

2009-12-08T11:28:00.000-08:00

Matt and Ash were running around as the kids ALWAYS do. But, Matt's pants were a bit long. Ash accidentally stepped on them, and he slipped and fell. He hit just the right spot on the floor and sliced open his chin. It was GROSS. I don't like to deal with hospital emergency rooms or stitches. I prefer the butterfly method. So, I called Virginia over to help with the other kids so I can patch up Matt. Here is the 'battle wound' as we are calling it, and the butterfly.

It's a GIRL!!!

2009-11-12T17:56:00.000-08:00

We officially found out today that we are having a GIRL!!! YAY!!!

Ash's New Hair

2009-11-11T04:02:00.000-08:00

I was playing with Ashleigh's hair last week, and ended up braiding her entire head. We took it out the next morning and she LOVED the look. She decided that she wanted it for school the following Monday. So, Saturday night, I spent 2 hours braiding her entire head. She left it in all weekend. Then, Monday morning, she decided that she wanted it in longer 'JUST IN CASE'. So, she left it until Tuesday. Here is the braided head, and the finished product.

Halloween

2009-11-11T03:42:00.000-08:00

We chose the Wizard of Oz as our theme this year. I was the witch (at the church party, I painted my face, but not for trick-or-treating). Ash was Dorothy with a dress made by grandma Rockwell, Matt and Ben traded between the scarecrow and the tinman, and Garrett was the lion. Aaron was supposed to be the wizard, but it didn't really work out. We were cute anyways.

We went trick-or-treating with Mandy's kids. . .becoming a tradition. We all had a LOT of fun, and enjoye

d pounds of candy. We still haven't finished ours more than a week later. We use it to bribe the kids. hehe.

Pumpkin Picking

2009-10-28T07:31:00.000-07:00

We went to a local farmer's market last week and picked pumpkins. The rule was that the kids had to be able to carry their own pumpkin. Little did I know how strong Ashleigh is. Her first pumpkin is in the green barrel.

Luckily, she saw the pumpkin Matt chose, the one next to it, and decided to switch to a smaller one. Thank goodness for siblings. . .although, I guess I am glad Matt didn't try to lift a larger one. He probably could have.

A good time was had by all the kids. And, dadd

y was able to stay at home and get some work done for his project while we went.

Our finished product (We only carved Mat

t and Ash's. Ben and Garrett went to bed,

and didn't know the difference).

Where do babies come from?

2009-10-24T11:50:00.000-07:00

A conversation between Matt and my mom last night.

"Meme, how are babies made?"

10 second pause as my mom tries to decide if this was a real question as opposed to a joke.

"Well, daddy's sperm fertilize mommy's egg."

Matthew contemplated this for a few moments.

"Well, will pops berlilize your egg?"

"We have already done that. We made Jason, Lindsay, Ryan, Whitney, Tyler, McKenzie, Graham, and Zachary. We are done now."

"Oh."

Ah, school!!!

2009-09-11T12:04:00.000-07:00

The first day of school tears me two ways. It is the realization that summer is actually over. . .no more day trips to the beach. It is also the realization that summer is over. . .kids are out of the house again. I LOVE having my kids home with me. Ash is my helper. She helps clean, loves to babysit Garrett while I cook or clean. She is my mini-me. Matt has grown up this summer tremendously. He has become a big helper too and loves to help clean. But, they are all still brothers and sister. They still bicker. So, having 2 gone every day this year isn't such a terrible thing. Ben and I have been bonding so much. After dropping Matt off at preschool, Ben, Garrett and I come home. Garrett goes down for his morning nap and Ben and I hang out. I have also been able to get some errands done pretty fast in the mornings which helps. I also have time to keep up with my blog. hehe. Then, I have the afternoon to get dinner going, and help Ash with homework.

My Parent's GIGANTUOUS Lawn

2009-07-05T18:41:00.000-07:00

I went to visit my parents this weekend for the fourth of July. Aaron decided I needed a break, and kept the 2 boys who are a bit more. . .rambunctious. I took Ash and Garrett with me. We got there, and my dad had to run to an appointment. As he was leaving, he said, "When I get back, Ashleigh, I just have to mow the lawn, then I can spend time with you."

I decided out of the goodness of my heart (and I felt badly that he had to leave) that I would mow the lawn for him. I got the mower out, and started it up. I had Ash all set up with Garrett and snacks, and the bouncer (She is a good babysitter). I got half-way through the front lawn and was sweating really badly. I realized then that my parent's lawn is WAY BIGGER than I ever realized as a kid. And the back is worse than the front. I was going to finish if it killed me. I did NOT want my dad to have to come back and work. I wanted him to play with his granddaughter.

I think it took me at least 2 hours. Could have been more. Ash babysat Garrett the whole time. I told her because she did such a great job, I would buy ice cream sundae makings.

When I finished, I went upstairs to take a shower. My dad came home. He was so happy. He took Ash on a long bike ride, played across the street, they found a hopscotch board. They had a blast. Plus, my mom offered to pay for the ice cream sundae stuff. It was all worth it. I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Jessica Simpson Detail

2009-07-01T20:16:00.001-07:00

My brother-in-law was on the Jessica Simpson Detail today at the
Tiger Woods Tournament in Bethesda...his friend snapped a quick pic for
my sister. SO COOL!!! Here is the pic. He is the police officer standing behind her.

Sick Kid

2009-06-29T23:24:00.000-07:00

You know I have a sick child when I call the doctor at 2am. Benjamin has been coughing since yesterday, but I am not one to worry. Until he is up ALL night long because he can't breathe. I called the doctor and she had me put the phone up to his mouth to listen. She said it sounds like croup and so I will be bringing him to the doctor tomorrow.

Amidst all of this, Benjamin remains cute as ever.

"mommy, I go in da hool?"
"you want to go in the pool?"
"yeah, ash and matt in da hool"
"no, they are sleeping"
"they are poopy?"
"no, they aren't poopy"
"I am poopy?"
"are you poopy?"
"no, just peepee. I go in da hool?"
"no, it's night time. You are peepee? You want me to change your diaper?"
"yeah, take my diaper off? I go in da hool?"
"Go to sleep, sweetie."

I think he was dreaming about the pool.

Our New Mailbox

2009-06-24T09:20:00.000-07:00

When we bought our house, we bought everything that comes with a 'new' old house. Old hot water heater, old kitchen appliances, old washer and dryer, and even old mailbox. Since we have painted the house, the 'old' mailbox has been scraping the paint off. Aaron isn't happy with it. So, he decided to go out and purchase some nice smelling cedar and MAKE a new mailbox. I LOVE having a handy husband. It is BEAUTIFUL!!! But, I will let you decide that for yourself. Here is the finished product. :D

Notice the lovely trim work.

We carved out the numbers. . .yes, I helped. And, even hand painted them. . .with my nailpolish.

Grandparent names

2009-06-23T18:24:00.000-07:00

Matthew and Ashleigh were hanging out with Lorri, Danielle, and Taylor tonight. In the car, there was conversation about different grandparent names. Ash and Matt asked why Meme and Pops are called Meme and Pops. Taylor explained that those are the names Meme and Pops chose to be called. When you become a grandma or grandpa, you get to choose what you are called. Lorri told the kids she wants to be called Nana. Danielle said she wanted to be called Momsicle, and her husband will be called Popsicle. Matthew said, "I know what I want to be called when I am a grandma." Lorri corrected him, "You mean grandPA." Danielle said, "What do you want to be called, Matt, when you are a grandpa?" He confidently said, "Batman".

I love my kids. :D

Father's Day Cinnamon Rolls

2009-06-22T19:11:00.000-07:00

Every year I have been making cinnamon rolls for father's day as a fundraiser for the young women. This year, however, we made enough money for the girls with an earlier fundraiser. We decided that I would just make 100 rolls to hand one to every father in sacrament.

In doing this, I got a few upset families emailing me. They rely on my rolls for family gettogethers. I decided at that point that I would sell them. I sent out an email and people started placing their orders. In the end I believe I sold about 80 rolls. I am a happy baker. :D

In the past Aaron and I have talked about trying to sell them on a more consistant basis. We dropped that because of food regulations, sanitary purposes, and such. After selling them this year, I decided to go ahead and try to push the sale of my "Big Buns". I will keep you updated.

Shelf Reliance Giveaway

2009-06-16T18:12:00.000-07:00

Shelf Reliance is doing a free giveaway. . .Here is what they are doing.

It’s a beautiful thing. The unique first in - first out design will cut down on expired food and, therefore, wasted money. The Harvest means less mess, less hassle, and fewer bruises from cans that fall all over the place if you look at them the wrong way. And the best part of all?

One of you lucky souls will be given a Harvest 72″ on Shelf Reliance’s dime. No cost to you. No strings. No joke.

This giveaway is the first installment of a new feature on their blog. They're calling it “Free on Friday,” and it’s exactly what it sounds like! They’ll be offering new giveaways every two weeks, and the fortunate winners will be announced on Fridays.

I won’t keep you waiting any longer. Here’s how the Harvest giveaway will work:

Anyone who comments on their blog entry will be entered to win the Harvest 72″. Each comment counts as a separate entry. The winner will be chosen at noon (Mountain Time Zone) on Friday, June 26th, so get your comments in before then!

http://www.shelfreliance.com/blog/?p=104&cpage=16#comment-850

Good Luck and happy entering

The Joy of Motherhood (If you have a weak stomach, you may not want to read this : )

2009-06-16T04:12:00.000-07:00

I find it interesting that as a kid, just the smell or even the sound of someone throwing up would make me gag. Yet, as a parent, it just seems to not bother me. I was up all night long with three kids throwing up and diarrhea. Ben yelled to me, so I came to his room. His normal routine is to wake up and want a drink of water. I got to his room, and he said, "I spit." So, I naively touched his pillow to see what he meant. Yup, I put my hand right in the throw up. I called to Aaron to come help me. We cleaned Ben up, and I gave him some water. We went up to bed. I fell asleep for about 2 hours, when Ben came upstairs and told me he leaked his diaper. I took him down to fix it, and he hadn't leaked just pee. YAY!!! I cleaned that up, gave him some more water and headed upstairs. 10 minutes later, I heard Ben crying at the bottom of the stairs. I started down the stairs and heard what sounded like a cup of water being dumped on the floor. I carefully stepped around it, cleaned him up, sent him back to bed, and then cleaned the floor. I decided it was time to sleep on the couch just in case. Just as I got comfortable, Matt came running out of his room. He came to me and climed in with me. He said he was scared of the dark and wanted a light on. I cuddled him for a minute, and took him back to bed. He said, "Oh, but I threw up." You know, I though he smelled a little when I was cuddling him, but I figured it was on me from Ben. So, another sheet set to wash. I fixed Matt, and Ash asked if I would change her diaper. I got them both fixed back into bed, and I headed back upstairs. I knew at this point it was Garrett's turn to wake up. Sure enough, he did. I nursed him and put him back to bed. I fell asleep at about 5:30. Ben came up and climed into bed with me at about 5:45. He stayed there for about 15minutes. He got up to go downstairs, so I asked Aaron if he would go with Ben. Just as Aaron started to get out of bed, Ben threw up on our floor. We took him downstairs to Matt and Ash waking up. They all sprawled out in the living room. I gave each of them a bowl, and I went to clean up the mess in our room. I went back to bed, Aaron called out of work, and here I am at 7:30 writing this because my kids won't ask daddy to change a diaper. Oh, the joys of being a mom.

My Mother's Day Poem

2009-05-11T06:32:00.000-07:00

Ashleigh's teacher, Mrs. Ballack, is AWESOME!!!! For mother's day, she had a 'Mad Libs' style poem for the kids to fill out. She asked the kids questions like how much does mommy weigh, how tall is mommy? Here is my poem, Ashleigh's answers in quotations.

My Special Mom
My mom is the most wonderful mom in the whole world! She's as pretty as 'a butterfly'. She weighs '10' pounds and is '18' feet tall. Her favorite food is 'broccoli'. When my mom was as little as I am now, she used to 'go outside and play.' Her favorite toy was 'Barbies'. When she grew up, she met daddy. She was '3' years old. I think mom is funny when she 'makes silly faces.' I know when she's really angry when she 'washes my mouth out with soap.' I wouldn't trade my mom for a 'puppy.'
Happy Mother's Day
Love,
'Ashleigh'

Not that you really NEEDED the quotes to figure out what parts came from Ash, but it's fun. I love my poem. And, I LOVE my kids. I had a wonderful, amazing mother's day, and hope all of you did too.

Fun With Words

2009-04-26T20:48:00.000-07:00

Aaron decided this morning he wanted to have a bit of fun with words with Ashleigh. So, he whispered in her ear, and she came running over to me. "Mommy, can you fix my 'BUTTon'?" I smiled, and she went running back to him. He whispered in her ear again, and she came running over. "Mommy, can we have 'BUTTerNUT' squash for dinner?" I laughed, and Aaron was a bit proud that he got 2 good words in there. Oh, the fun we have with our kids. I don't really know if she knows what he was doing, but she certainly thought it was fun that whatever daddy was telling her made me smile. :D

Eggs with that 'stuff' in them

2009-04-24T07:10:00.000-07:00

I made some eggs this morning, and put some green peppers in them. Oh, I love it. Well, Matthew wanted some eggs also, so I saved a bit for him. He took one look at it and said, "I don't want eggs with that 'stuff' in them." I told him there wasn't that much, and to just pick out the peppers.

I went to brush my teeth while he ate. I came out and saw peppers all over the floor. I told him he needed to clean them up and put them aside in his bowl or in the garbage. I said, "That is disgusting. You don't just spit what you don't want onto the floor." His response was, "I didn't, I threw them on the floor."

Can't argue with that.

Grateful for life

2009-04-06T18:14:00.000-07:00

Ashleigh and Matt were in a car accident on Tuesday. My friend, Lorri's, daughter was driving. I look back at what happened and how it happened. Danielle did a few things wrong, but when I think about what she should have done. . .the damage may have been worse. All I know is that the Lord (and Graham) were watching over EVERYONE that day. Everyone is safe, and Ashleigh will have a small scar on her face to show for it. A piece of glass flew by her face cutting the bridge of her nose, and the outside corner of her eye. She is VERY lucky. I am just grateful for life. I love my kids. . .And we LOVE Danielle.

What color are his eyes?

2009-03-12T18:42:00.000-07:00

Aaron and I have an ongoing 'THING'. . .What color are Garrett's eyes?
You be the judge.

Bed Time

2009-03-12T17:56:00.001-07:00

Why is it that when I finally go to bed at a decent time like 10pm, it seems like that is the night I get woken up 100 times.

Last night, I was in bed falling asleep at 10:30. Midnight rolls around, and Benjamin comes crawling into bed. I get him to go downstairs (Thanks to Aaron who walked him down for me. . .what a loving husband), only to have Garrett wake up crying. I didn't feel like getting out of bed, so I let Garrett cry for 5 min. He fell back asleep, thank goodness. Then, about 3am, Garrett woke up to eat. I was nursing him when I heard, "Mommy!!!" Matt woke up to a nightmare. I had to have Aaron go since I was nursing. That only made it worse. "I WANT MOMMY!!!" So, I quickly finished with Garrett, and ran downstairs. He had a dream about a monster. I went through our usual, "Did you pretend the monster was wearing a pink dress, with boogies hanging out his nose, and he had blue hair?" That put a smile on his face. So, we said a quick prayer and he went back to sleep. By this time I was totally awake. I put Garrett back into his crib, and lay down. I tossed. . .I turned. . .I couldn't think. All kinds of thoughts running through my head (not to mention my allergies acting up since I was so awake). I finally got a pen and paper and wrote my thoughts down. . .things like "OH! Lorri should try taking that doorknob to Home Depot and they may re-key it for her", and "If Aaron's company plans on giving him a promotion, will they still give him his raise?" Once EVERYTHING was down on paper, I was finally able to fall asleep (1 1/2 hours after Garrett woke to eat).

Man, no wonder I am so tired during the day.

The Gray Hair

2009-03-02T18:20:00.001-08:00

Well, I found my first gray hair the other day. . .Can you see it in the pic? YES!!! Of course I pulled it out!

Official sign that I am now OLD!!! I have been feeling it lately. The sore muscles, painful knees, weak ankles, but I have been pushing them off as pains from chasing kids. I have finally given in that I am getting older.

It doesn't bother me, though. I am still young at heart, and that is all that matters.

'Poopy Boy'

2009-02-10T20:34:00.000-08:00

I was changing Garrett's diaper the other day and told him he was a 'poopy boy'. He started laughing. . .so I started recording. I didn't tickle him or anything. He just started laughing. I even tried a few other phrases, but nothing other than 'poopy boy' worked. What a boy.

Garrett laughing 5 months from John Rockwell on Vimeo.

Dreaming?

2009-02-09T19:51:00.000-08:00

"Mom?"

I was in the bathroom getting ready for bed when I heard the tiniest voice.

I walked into Ash's room and said, "What?" No answer.

I walked into the boys' room and said, "What?" No answer.

"Mom?" I heard it again. I walked back into the boys' room, and said, "What?"

"Can you get me new shoes for my present?"

I asked "New shoes for your present?"

"No, new shoes that I can marry."

"New shoes that you can marry?"

"Yeah, new shoes that I can marry from Santa."

"Ok, I'll get you new shoes that you can marry from Santa. Go back to bed. I love you"

"I love you."

I guess Matt was having a good dream.

Letter of the Week

2009-02-06T18:40:00.000-08:00

In school, Ashleigh has a new letter each week that she has to work on. One of the homework assignments is to find pictures that start with the letter and glue them on a piece of paper, then write the word. Last week, it was letter 'G' that she was working on. She and I were thumbing through a magazine, and she stopped. She looked up at me and said, "I can't wait to do letter 'B'." A little puzzled, I asked her, "Why?" She said very quickly and very seriously, "Because I get to do Boobs." I looked down and sure enough, she was open to a page of a woman in only a bra. Oh, what will she think of next?

Ash is smarter than me. . .?

2008-12-22T12:38:00.001-08:00

Well, between the holidays, work, spending time with the kids, and a new dog I haven't had much time to get on here and write anything.

The other day I had Ashleigh at work with me. We were talking about Christmas or something, and she was putting her coat on. She turned to me and said, "Mommy, I am smart. I am in school. I know more than you. All you do is help customers all day. I am in school. You're not. I am smarter." She sure showed me. But, I still love her. :D

"I'm a lucky girl"

2008-12-04T18:58:00.000-08:00

So Ashleigh LOVES to rhyme. She says a word, and we go back and forth rhyming that word. Well, she was in the car with Lorri, and she wanted to play the game. Here is pretty much how it went.

Ash: "I'm a lucky girl"
Lorri: "I'm a chucky girl"
Dani: "I'm a sucky girl"
Ash: "I'm a ducky girl"
Lorri: "I'm a pucky girl"
Dani: "I'm a mucky girl"
Ash: Can you guess the one that came next?

Oh, kids. . .

Po-Fig. . .What does it mean?

2008-11-18T11:14:00.000-08:00

So, my little brother (can I still call him little even though he is WAY bigger than me?) is in Russia on his mission. Apparently he is doing pretty well with figuring out the language. He wrote me a letter and said, "I am just so po-fig about things that i just dont care a lot of the times." He said he wasn't sure if 'po-fig' was English or Russian. Does anyone know what this means? I am assuming it is Russian. It is funny reading his email because his grammar and his spelling gets worse with each letter. (Not that I am perfect, either) I guess he will be an expert in Russian by the time he comes home.

A Handsome Prince For Ash

2008-11-13T12:32:00.000-08:00

I started work again. . .YAY!!! Lorri is babysitting the kids for us. I have to say she is our savior right now. I wouldn't have been able to go back if it wasn't for her. (Although, maybe that wouldn't have been so bad). : )

So, Lorri told me the other day that she and Ashleigh were talking. Ashleigh told her that she lived in a tall tower and that a handsome prince could cast her spell by coming and his heart had to be filled with her love, then he would recue her and they would get married. So, I feel there are a few things about that that bother me. One was that Lorri asked her, "What if the prince isn't handsome?" Ash's response was, "NO, he has to be handsome." Do I put that in her head, that we can only marry someone handsome? It makes me think back on a conversation I had with Ash about being pretty.

I was looking through a magazine and Ash pointed to one of the girls and said, "Oh, she is SO pretty." I asked her why, and she told me because she was wearing beautiful makeup. I then proceeded to find a picture of a model with barely any makeup. Ash told me she was okay. Then I asked her if I was pretty. She said, "You look pretty on Sundays, and when you go out with daddy." (The only times I every have makeup on). So, did I teach my child that we are only pretty when we are wearing makeup? Have I gone wrong in barely ever wearing makeup? If I did wear makeup every day, would that have made a difference in her thinking process?

Oh, what we worry about as parents.

2008-11-12T11:08:00.000-08:00

So, I was at my sister's house last week. VOTING DAY!!! She came home with a sticker on letting the world know that she voted. How cool, I thought. Until I looked at the bottom of the sticker. It says 'Yo Vote' (I voted in spanish). My issue with this is that I thought you had to be able to speak English to be a citizen. And, don't you have to be a citizen to vote? So, why do we need stickers in spanish or any other language for that matter.

On a more positive note. . .while we were there, Lindsay (my sister) made us ice cream. This was the BEST ice cream I ever had. I is called 'Fat Man's Delight'. . .yeah, the name says it all. I believe the recipe came from my sister-in-law, Ruth.

Fat Man's Delight Ice Cream:
1 lb. milky way bars
1/2 can chocolate syrup
2/3 cup sweetened condensed milk

Cook above ingredients until melted. . .continue to stir over low heat until candy bars are melted.

Stir in:
1 pint heavy whipping cream
1 quart half and half.

Cover and chill for at least 4 hours. Pour into ice cream maker and enjoy!
Seriously. . .try it!

2008-10-30T08:05:00.000-07:00

So, when I was in the hospital waiting to leave with Garrett, the nurse came in and said he was shaking. She wanted to run some tests. Now, she noticed this about 20 min. after his circumcision. I figured he was shaking because the doctor just cut his penis. I let her run the tests. Everything came out normal. The doctor from the ICU even checked him out. So, the doctors let me take him home. The reason I am telling you this is becuase Aaron and I were talking about all the tests they ran on Garrett that day. We realized that the doctors were checking him for drug addiction. They thought I was taking drugs during pregnancy because a shaking newborn is a sign of drug dependency. HAHA!!! I bet it looked really great that I was trying to leave the hospital a day early. Oh, what they must have thought of me.

2008-10-30T07:39:00.001-07:00

I LOVE MY FAMILY!!!

My Darling Matthew

2008-10-26T14:43:00.000-07:00

Well, as some of you have seen from the video from Garrett's birth, Matthew is a character. Lorri, Danielle and I took Matthew to Great Adventure Fright Fest on Friday night. Matt wanted to play games, yet I didn't bring money (for that reason. I would have spent it all on silly games). When we first got there, Lorri lovingly spent her only $5 on a game and he won a fun Elmo hat (pimp daddy hat). He then wanted to play more games. I kept telling him, "I don't have any money." Toward the end of the night, I said again, "I don't have any money." He looked at me and said, "No, Lorri has the monies."

We took Matt to the kiddie rides for a bit. He went on one little critter ride that the adults weren't allowed on. Danielle and I kept telling him to give a thumbs up and say, "You got it dude." Well, he got the "You got it dude" down pat, but the thumb part was a little trickier. He would throw up his pointer finger and say it. Then he would realize that was the wrong finger, so he would put it down. He would then look down at his fingers for a minute, and every once in a while, he would get the correct finger. It was adorable.

We had decided to go off from the group family costumes this year (Matt wanted to go to Pop's ward halloween party so it all worked out), so Matt was going to be Spiderman. He wore his costume for a week straight (he still won't take it off). Saturday morning, he was wearing the Spiderman costume, and he hit Ben. Ben started crying and he looked at Ben and said, "It's okay, it's just my muscles". So, they got up and started playing. They were 'hangin' out against the wall, and Ben looked at Matt and said, "muh-muh?" Matt said, "yeah, Ben, those are my muscles." I guess Matt decided that Ben didn't know how to say muscles well enough, so he started practicing with him. He pointed to his biceps, "Ben, can you say muscles?" Ben repeated, "Muh-muh". Then Matt pointed to his chest, "Ben, can you say boobies, BIG BOOBIES?" Oh, the innocence of a 3 year old.

Mommy's Home

2008-09-18T14:47:00.000-07:00

I am finally home. It has been a long and frustrating day. Being that Garrett was born at 1:23am on Tuesday morning, technically, I was to stay in the hospital until Thursday. Had he been born right before midnight on Monday night, they would NOT have let me stay past Wednesday. So, I told every doctor and nurse that I wanted to leave on Wed. They told me they would do what they can to get me out. Unfortunately, not one thing got done that they said would. The hearing test wasn't done until Wed. night, but most importantly, the circumcision didn't get done until Thurs. late morning. I pushed and pushed for it to get done on Wed., but Aaron came to visit early morning, and My mom and dad came later in the morning. I was delayed in the pushing, and the doctor that was to do the "cut" was stuck in labor and delivery ALL night long. Then I was promised that the doctor does the rounds early (like 7 or 8am), and it would get done then. But, again, it all got delayed and nothing was done until Thurs. morning at 10:45. He then has to stay in the hospital for 4 more hours. I figured at that point, I am already stuck staying in the hospital, may as well take advantage of it, so I ordered the free lunch, and one for Aaron, and took my nice hot shower, and watched some tv, and most importantly, I bonded with Garrett. It was very frustrating, yet very pleasant.

Anyways, I am home now. Aaron brought Ashleigh to pick me up. Lorri took Ben and Matt to keep the chaos at the hospital to a minimum. It is almost 6pm on Thursday, and Aaron took the kids outside to set up the trampoline and give me some sanity as I can't leave the house for a while. Garrett is doing very well, he is healthy and happy, and VERY CALM. The kids are ecstatic to have him home finally. Ashleigh was asking me ALL kinds of questions on the way home. I almost forgot Garrett was in the car as he was silent the entire way.

For those who know I was having the pelvic bone separation, it did separate more at birth. Luckily, it isn't serious. It is a very common thing to happen, and I guess it didn't separate too much with me. I was asking to OB about it, and she asked if my leg was dragging, or if I had to swing my leg around to walk. I told her no, that it was just sore to lift my leg. She said it was totally fine, and that it should heal nicely, considering I take it "easy". I can't do stairs (maybe 1 time a day if needed. So I will continue to sleep downstairs for now), and no heavy lifting (as that is with ANY birth), so I am avoiding the kids at all costs. It is at least nice to have Aaron to help for a few days. Ben is the only one that I would pick up, and I am telling him mommy has owies, and can't lift him for now.

2008-09-17T17:54:00.000-07:00

Slo-mo of clips from the delivery room set to Michael McClean's "You're Not Alone".

The Birth of Garrett Kenton Rockwell from John Rockwell on Vimeo.

2008-09-17T08:17:00.000-07:00

Garrett Kenton Rockwell was born September 16 at 1:23 AM. He was 8 lbs. 12 ozs. and just under 21 inches long. Whitney and the baby are recovering at Saint Peter's University Hospital in room 3603.

The siblings meet Garrett for the first time. Matthew has some medical questions about the delivery. May not be suitable for children due to the use of medical terms...

The kids meet Garrett. from John Rockwell on Vimeo.

The family update

2008-09-04T17:32:00.000-07:00

I feel like I tend to leave Matt out of the loop of things, so I just want to update on everyone in general and add a few pics. Ashleigh - she started school and as of now is LOVING it. She is a huge helper around the house. She actually just finished doing the dishes for me. Her favorite thing is to have a girls' night and pamper mommy. She puts lotion on my feet and legs (I have been teaching her some good massaging techniques), and she brushes and styles my hair. And, yes, I have left the house with 'her' style still in it so she knows I love the hairdo. I love having a princess around. Ashleigh, as she is growing up a bit, has been showing an amazing spirit. The other night she and I were in the car alone, she asked me to put on a Jesus movie because it had been a while since we had seen one. I put on 'Finding Faith in Christ'. We got to talking about Jesus, and she was asking how we know Jesus is there. I talked to her about Graham and how we can't see Graham in heaven, but we know he is with Jesus and Heavenly Father. I also asked her if we can see or hear Jesus and Heavenly Father. She said, "No, but I can talk to them when I am scared." We decided that we talk to them through prayer. I asked if she can hear Heavenly Father next to her when she prays for that comfort. She said, "No, I just know he is there to comfort me." I am amazed at how much she has grown.

Matthew - he is a sweet boy who knows when loves are needed. He cuddles me all the time, and needs a lot of love himself. He is very sensitive. It amazes me how I have 2 boys who are VERY MESSY, and love getting messy, yet the second they drop a piece of food, they start crying and whining to pick it up. Matthew ADORES his big sister. He wants to do EVERYTHING Ash does. Including go to school. This morning he asked me if he could come out to the bus and ask the bus driver if he can get on the bus. He walked out with me, and just started walking onto the bus. The driver giggled, but I ended up having to pick him up and carry him back to the house. He was very sad. He loves Lightning McQueen from Cars, and Buzz Lightyear, Spiderman, Batman. Sometimes he will be all of them at the same time. There are also times where Matt (in wanting to do EVERYTHING Ash does) dresses up in Ashleigh's princess dresses or her leotard. I guess I should take a picture of it. He LOVES the water. We went to Ricky's lake for Labor Day, and all he wanted to do was be in the water. I told him he had to wait to go in until Aaron arrived, but he was so anxious, Pops finally caved and took him in. They had a blast. Matt does tend to get bullied by his brother and sister. He is the sensitive one, so the second they start teasing he is the one to run and scream instead of fight back. So, they keep doing it because of the reaction they get. I feel sorry for him.

Ben - The bilingual bully. He loves to run after Matt and bite him. Every time they bite each other, I make them bite themselves quite hard. It doesn't seem to get the point accross. The other problem is that Ben knows biting is him power against Matt and he uses every second of it. We were at the park, and Ben was taking a toy Matt was using. Matt leaned over and bit Ben on the arm, then ran. I told Matt to come sit in time-out, but Ben was standing at the bottom of the stairs holding onto the railings with a huge evil grin. Matt knew if he headed back down the stairs, Ben would bite him back. So, he went all the way around the playground to get to me, and keep away from Ben. Ben was satisfied because he scared Matt away, and got the toy. Oh, boys. They are definitely more destructive, more physical, and more. . .well. . .boyish. Ben also worships his big sister. She will play with him, and he will be laughing, then Matt will come along and do the same exact thing. He will just look at Matt and shoo him away. I guess Matt does get left out a lot. The kids have been going to a spanish speaking babysitter for a year while I was working. Ashleigh and Matt learned words here and there, but Ben speaks it. I know he has conversations with me in Spanish (probably a mix of the 2), and I have NO idea what he is saying. We say agua instead of water, and leche instead of milk. Ben will give you a beso instead of a kiss or an embrasso instead of a hug. He does know the english word because we say it both ways to him, but I think it's great that he knows spanish, and I want him to remember the little that he does know.

Aaron - He is loving his job at Schering-Plough. He works in the lab. He tests new drugs to be put out on the market basically. He really enjoys the people he works with, and it is a GREAT company to work for. I can't remember him coming home once in the past 2 years working there where he has been depressed, or not happy with his day at work. It makes for a happier home. He currently is teaching the 15 and 16 year olds at church. I think 17 is included in that, but not positive. I think he really enjoys them because they do interact, and they know a bit about the church. They do joke here and there, but I think Aaron likes that too.

Whitney - Due with our 4th child in 3 weeks. I am very scared as it is another boy. I am very excited to have another baby, though. We really felt like this is what the Lord wanted, and so I am trying to embrace it. We have decided to name him Garrett Kenton Rockwell. Garrett is a take on Gary (my dad), and Kenton is Aaron's dad's name. I am anxious for him to come mostly because I can't walk at this point and it is hard to care for 3 kids when you can't get off the couch. I make do, but it is hard. I know that having a new baby isn't going to be much easier, but at least I will be a bit more mobile (after a few weeks of recovery). I have been working at Porcelanosa Tile for the past year. I started maternity leave a bit early because I have pelvic symphysis separation (my pelvic bone started separating). It isn't anything dangerous, or something to worry about. . .it is just painful. Makes running after 3 kids so much MORE FUN!!! I have loved working, but also love being home with the kids, as hectic as it gets. The kids are loving having me home. It has been nice.

Ash's first day of school

2008-09-04T17:09:00.001-07:00

Okay, so it has been a while since I have updated. About 5 days after I did the last entry, I found out I was pregnant. Things got a bit crazy after that. Considering EVERYONE is blogging now, I figured I should update this, and keep up as best as I can. I figure if my sister-in-law with 6 kids can do it, I surely can. Thanks for the push, Mandy. : )

We have officially started school. Ashleigh is now a Kindergartener. YAY!!! She is going half day. Part of me is loving it, and part of me wants her to go full day. She is an enormous help around the house, so I love having her home, but to me that is selfish. She is so ready for school. She has been looking forward to this day for the past 3 years. I would love her to go full day for her. Also, as much as she is a helper, she is still a sister, and therefore she does tend to tease her brothers at times. But, I am not complaining. I LOVE HAVING HER HOME!!!

Pops and Zachary came down to our house on Tuesday night Sept. 2, to give father's blessings to Ash and Zach. As soon as they arrived Ash ran to pops and said very enthusiastically, "This is my last time to visit you." I thought it very cute that because she is starting school, she can no longer visit with anyone.

We had a lot of fun getting ready for school. Grandma had bought Ash a brand new outfit for school, but it was too big. I brought it to the store to exchange it, but they didn't have any other size, so we had a girls' day out on Saturday. I took Ash to JC Penney and she picked out the adorable outfit in the pictures (amazingly she chose jeans. But they have hearts made out of rhinestones on the pockets, so I think that helped.) Then we headed over to the nail salon, and both got pedicures. She got a manicure to match. I don't have pics of her nails, but they are a turquoise blue with a white design and sparkles over it all. Very cute.

On Wed., grandma brought over doughnuts for the kids. We all had breakfast together, and then Ash quickly put on her brand new outfit. I straightened her hair and she was ready to go at about 8am. The bus comes at 8:42, but she was VERY anxious to wait outside for her bus. I did what I could to keep them busy inside the house for a while. At about 8:30, we finally went out on the front steps. Matt and Ben sat very nicely while I waited with Ash. Luckily the bus comes right to the front of our house, so no one has to be packed into a car, or running around a busy street. She got on the bus and we headed to run errands.

Waiting for her to come home was a little different. The bus was supposed to arrive at 11:52. We went outside at about 11:45, and ended up waiting until 12:30 for her to actually get here. I know new bus routes, new routines, I just hope it's not that long every day. It was difficult keeping Matt and Ben busy for that long without them getting too close to the street. They, had fun being outside, though. They waved to all the trucks driving by. Ben caught an ant. That was fun. He was very proud of himself, "I got it. I got it."

So, the bus finally arrived, and Ash starts coming down the stairs. I said, "How was school." She replied in a huff, "It was SO HARD." I asked her what was so hard about it. She said, "It was so boring. We did HOMEWORK ALL DAY LONG." I started laughing. Then, she turned to Matt (who through all of this is VERY disappointed that he doesn't get to ride the bus or go to school yet.) and said, "Matt my school is so boring, you wouldn't want to go there anyway." After about 15 minutes of prying, I got her to tell me they had singing time. We sang the "bear hunt" song 500 times. Anyone want to hear it? She also told me that she snuck onto the playground for 2 minutes. But did not get to play with anything in the room at all.

Although Ash's first day was BORING. . .she was still VERY excited to go back today. We were out on the front porch 10 minutes early again. I will update you over the next couple of days to let you know if it gets any better. : )

Today was her second day at school. She got off the bus (time was a little better, 12:10), and I asked her how school was. She said, "Much better." She told me she was able to have free play which helps. She did NOT go on the playground today. It makes me happy that she still considers it a fun day even though she didn't get to go outside. She did a 'girl' puzzle, and although she doesn't remember a single name of any other kids, she wasn't shy and talked to the other kids and made friends. I am very proud of her. She says she is still shy with her teacher, but that will be broken in time. There is a girl she sits next to on the bus that she talks to, but again, doesn't remember a name.

2008-01-03T14:06:00.000-08:00

Jan. 3, 2008 HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! We started the year off sick. Both boys have had a nasty cold for about a week now. Aaron got it on Friday before New Years and is finally getting over it. Ashleigh is coughing and definately has the cold. My throat started hurting yesterday. . .my first day back at work. I am fighting it with all I have got. Fruits and Veggies. We'll see if we make it to Hershey's Chocolate World on Sat. with the fam.

My goal for the New Year is to wake up with the kids every morning. Matt is an early riser (sometimes as early as 5:30am). I usually snuggle in bed with him for about an hour. I want to get up and play with him. . .even if I have to turn the tv on and snuggle on the couch. As long as I get out of bed. So far, I am doing well.

12-27-07

2007-12-27T08:07:00.000-08:00

Matthew's birthday. Today he is 3. Don't forget to call him and sing "happy birthday" to him. We all had a very wonderful Christmas. I have a copy of 'The Testaments' in the car that the kids LOVE to watch. It really helped to keep the spirit of Christmas in our family this year. We thought a lot about Jesus, and we try to keep reminding them why we have Christmas.

We all did get a lot of fun toys, though. Aaron bought me a GPS. I used it to get to his parent's house the other day. That was fun. He also printed out the cutest pictures of the kids and himself and framed them. Then he had each child write their own name under their picture. It is adorable and I am having him hang it in the living room when it is finished.

I got Aaron what I could from his list. He has some expensive taste, so he didn't get everything.

The kids got a lot. We packed up all the old toys on Monday so everything we have now is brand new. We bought them a V-Smile video game. They have fun with that. I think the best toy had to be Matt's birthday present. Aaron went online and researched (as he does with everything we buy) remote control cars. Matt opened it on Monday (we celebrated with Popeye's Chicken, an ice cream cake, and McKenzie and Arli. . .Kenton and Virginia came later), and he absolutely loves it. He got hold of the remote and it started towards him. He was shocked, so he couldn't figure out to let go of the handle. It just kept ramming into his feet. I wish I had it on video. That would have been one to send in to AFV.

Merry Christmas to all, and a very Happy New Year.