Guess Who?

So, everybody says that our kids are exact copies of each other. Can you tell who is who in these pictures? Grandma Helen gave this sweet, pale blue dress to Lindsay. I saved it, and now Julia fits into it. Well, if you've read this far, I'll just tell you. I'm sure you've guessed already. The one on the left is Julia, and the one on the right is Lindsay. They do look pretty similar, but I don't think they look exactly alike. It seems like Julia's face is a little more round than Lindsay's. Also, though you can't tell from this picture, Julia has blue eyes like me, and Lindsay has dark, brown eyes like her Daddy. They also differ in their personalities. Let's just say that so far Julia seems to be a bit more mild than her older sister. ;)

We'll have to pull this dress out again when Julia is 9 months old. We can put her in the exact same pose. That way it will be a more accurate comparison. That will be fun.

Funny story. The pictures I took of Julia today didn't really turn out that well. One of them was super fuzzy. Another one had the bookshelf in the background in focus. It's getting late, and I'm tired, frustrated, and disappointed. Tim says, "Hon, don't worry about it. We can just dress her up in the dress another day." I reply, "No, I can't do that. She has too many dresses. I don't have enough Sundays to dress her up in all of her dresses if I double up on one of them." Hee, hee.

Update

So, I haven't posted in a while (how many of my posts will start with that...). I'm just looking on my camera to see any pictures that would be of interest.

Wesley had his third birthday. We had a fun day. We just had a family from our ward over for some cake and ice cream. I think he had fun. His face says it all, right?

Miles had his 8th birthday. It was on a Sunday, so to make it extra special I made him breakfast in bed. He loved it.

We also had a birthday party for him this past weekend. We had a Backyard Carnival theme. It was fun. We invited his whole class. Some of the girls were brave enough to come to a boy's birthday party. We had tons of games and candy and fun. Well, I just checked my pictures, and there are no good ones of his party. Oh well.

The fourth graders at school participate in this program called "The Invention Convention". It's been really cool. Lindsay has had to go through this big process of what it is to invent something. She's gotten really interested in Leonardo da Vinci complete with a phone call home from her teacher. He called to apologize that Lindsay had read ahead in a new book about da Vinci and had apparently happened upon the chapter that talks about some people accusing da Vinci of being homosexual. Poor Mr. Shoemaker. I'm sure he was nervous to have to tell me. Little does he know that we've basically had every conversation possible with Lindsay. She's like obsessive-compulsive curious, and I've always felt like I should just be calm and honestly answer any of her questions. It's taken us to some pretty crazy places, but I digress. Back to the "Invention Convention". Lindsay's idea is a Carsickness Preventor. Here's the picture.

The idea is that if the person doesn't sense from peripheral vision all the stuff going by really fast, then they won't get car sick. She's so funny. So you put these glasses on, and then you don't have any peripheral vision. There are a few canyons around here with really winding roads. Maybe we'll try it out this weekend.

And, of course, I need a picture of Julia:

This is the closest I've come to capturing this certain smile of hers that just literally takes over her whole face. See how it squeezes her little eyes shut tight. It just melts your heart to see it in person. She's so sweet.

And another one just for good measure.

And I can't leave out Samuel:

He was eating a smoothie with his breakfast burrito. You know how it can get stuck at the bottom of the cup. Well, he tipped it way up to get it to come down, and then it all came down and plopped on his sweet face. Such a cute kid.

Murphy's Law

Tim was out of town last week doing some continuing education in Las Vegas. He was gone from Tuesday night until Friday night. I knew it would be one-on-five, and I thought I was prepared. Wednesday morning was pretty okay. I got the two olders off to the bus stop, got Samuel out the door for his car-pool to preschool, got the other two people in the car, and was headed for the gym. All this done by 8:45. I think I might have even remained fairly calm throughout the whole process (which can be pretty hard when you have a 7 year old who literally takes 35 minutes to eat a bowl of oatmeal - of course it tastes gross. You've been sitting there for a half hour!!)

So, just as I'm pulling out of my street to head towards the gym, my cell phone rings. Hmmm. It's a Fort Collins number, but I don't recognize it. I answer it. "Hi, uh, Caroline? Hi, this is Jerry down at McGraw (the kids' school). Uhhh, well, Miles had a little, er, well, he's gonna need stitches." Apparently, Miles had run into another boy on the playground, and they both cracked their heads open. Immediate panic and opening of the floodgates of emotion. Stitches. (Quick background history: I have had stitches...okay, let me count really quick...6 different times: three times on my head, once on my lower lip, and twice on my legs.) Also, I know that some people say that he's a guy, it's cool to have scars, etc. etc. Let me explain. I have been looking at, gazing at, and adoring that perfect little face for almost 8 years now. I like it just the way it is. In fact, in my opinion, it is one of the three most adorable boys' faces I have ever seen in my entire life. I don't want to see an extra line on it. I could go on, but back to the scene.

Okay, what do I do? What do I do? Tim. Tim! Tim's out of town. How could he be gone when I need him like this? I immediately call him twice in a row (our signal for: this is an emergency. Don't you dare ignore my call. I don't care if you paid 8 grand for this seminar...hee, hee). He answers. I start bawling. He tries to calm me down. "Hon, I'll call Derek Weaver (the nicest guy in the world who lives in our ward who is a first year resident in Family Medicine at our local hospital here, who I'm sure has nothing better to do in his day (did I mention that his dear wife just had their fourth child) than field calls from hysterical mothers). He can give you a good recommendation of what to do." Sigh. Try to get myself together. Race to the school.

Bless her heart, the nurse at the school was so experienced. I literally remember her exact facial expression as she sort of "sized" me up. Hmmm, is this the type of parent who will get hysterical right here in the office if she sees this gaping wound on her son's face? Seriously, I saw her look at me just like that. And, yes, she decided that we'd just leave the gauze on until I got to the doctor's office. Good move.

We head to the doctor's office. They were great and got us in after just a 15 minute or so wait. We go back to the "treatment" room. Drum roll, please. The nurse takes off the gauze. Whoa. We're talking bad gash. It looked so bad to me. They cleaned him up. The doctor came in. She said that they could either super glue it (literally. Super glue. They used to buy the $300/tube Dermabond stuff, but it has the exact same chemical compound as Super Glue. So now, they just buy it as Sam's Club. Weird.) or send him to the plastic surgeon where they would sedate him and everything. I frantically call Tim again. Plastic surgeon or glue. Plastic surgeon or glue... If you ask me, I'd prefer the plastic surgeon, but I look around at my situation. I have a three year old and a five month old. What am I going to do with them waiting in another doctor's office? Poor Miles is already traumatized enough. Do I really want to put him through another few hours of anxiety, pain, etc.? I decide on the Super Glue. Miles did a great job of staying still. The scar should be minimal. I'm going to stockpile Mederma (apparently they now make it with sunscreen).

Here are the pics:

It's more than likely that he'll get the infamous Call Eyebrows and that the scar will be next to invisible by the time he's 21. Sigh.

TAG, You're IT!!

My sister-in-law, Leslie Call "tagged" me, and since I've never responded to one of these before, I thought I would for a change. So, here goes:

1. What was I doing 10 years ago?

Well, I was pregnant with Lindsay. Tim and I were still newlyweds. I was working at KeyBank in downtown Syracuse, NY while Tim worked on his second year of Physical Therapy school. It was such a magical time, seriously. Being married was incredible. Being pregnant was miraculous. It was like everything I had ever dreamed about growing up was all coming true. Cheesey, I know, but really that's how I felt. It was awesome.

2. Five Things on My To Do List

• send new baby gifts to Baby Dean (my nephew, born Feb 29!!) and to Jackson Temple Hiserman (my friend Lisa's baby boy, born Jan 15)
• send a 5th birthday gift to my Emma G!!!!! (my sister's daughter)
• organize and clean the entire house....
• order swim suits and sandals from Lands End while they still have their free shipping promo (seriously, the flip-flops I ordered from them 2 summers ago for the kids are still going strong)
• finally figure out, once and for all, the Tim Owens Family Budget System. My sis, Catherine, is my idol. If she can do it, I can do it.

3. What snack do I enjoy?

When I'm on Weight Watchers (which is NOT right now...): cheese stick, Fiber One bars (which are surprisingly tasty and good for you), an apple, or a nice, tall glass of ice water... Seriously, I used to consider those things a snack. I guess that's why I was a size 6.

When I'm not on Weight Watchers (which is now): any and all food product that I can get my hands on at any given moment, the more fat and carbs the better!! This past week that has meant: the last box of Tagalongs (Girl Scout cookies), the final Reese's Peanut Butter Eggs from Easter, an entire Easter Basket's worth of candy that I got at Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory for 75% off!!, ice cream with melted peanut butter, chocolate syrup, chopped nuts and/or hot cocoa powder on it. I guess that explains why I'm almost 5 months postpardum, and I'm still a healthy size 14. (Sigh!)

4. What would I do if I were suddenly a billionaire?

Weird question. All my needs are met. I can't imagine wanting too much more. I guess I'd love a house on a lake, because that would fulfill the boyhood (and the I-want-to-be-like-my-older-brother) dream of my sweet husband. I'd love to buy a house for both sets of grandparents here in Fort Collins, so they'd all come and visit more often or better yet just move here. Maybe I'd start a foundation that would concentrate on helping people develop sound parenting skills (starting with myself). There could be weekend getaways for parents to come together and really concentrate on the best ways to raise our kids into happy, healthy (physically AND emotionally) adults.

5. Three Bad Habits

1. I put off calling people back until it's too late at night, and then I can't call them back. I guess, just procrastination in general.
2. I let my anger get the best of me with my kids and fly off the handle way too often.
3. My self talk is too negative a lot of the time: "I have no friends here. I'm totally un-organized. I failed again." The list goes on. :):)

6. Six Places I've Lived

1. Saratoga, CA
2. Provo, UT
3. Moscow, Russia
4. Syracuse, NY and Buffalo, NY
5. Salt Lake City, UT
6. Fort Collins, CO

7. Five Jobs I've had

1. SAHM - Stay at home Mom
2. Substitute Teacher
3. Receptionist/Administrative Assistant
4. Piano Teacher/Voice Teacher
5. BYU Telefunder (I was even the Telefunder of the Month once. The golden cougar got to sit at my cubicle. :):))

8. Five Things People Don't Know about Me:

1. Though I try to laugh most things off and tend to be self-deprecating, I do take things really personally.
2. The first time I have about 3 hours free every week I'm going to take cello lessons and a German class.
3. I'm a perfectionist, but not your typical one. I mean, I'm totally okay with leaving the house with wet hair and no make-up, and I'll invite the whole ward over even if my house isn't immaculate. But when it comes to the standards I hold myself to in the area of personal relationships, I set my expectations way too high. It's hard. How could I ever be a perfect parent or perfect wife? Is there such a thing?
4. I totally had to chase Tim. :):) Oh yes, and it was worth every ounce of effort. Believe me!!
5. I think I might be turning into a bright, green environmentalist. See what moving to Colorado can do to a person?

The funny thing about that last question was that there is so little that people don't know about me. On the Bad Habits list, I was going to put that I always divulge too much personal information (also known as diarrhea of the mouth). If you know me, you know all about me whether you wanted to know or not.

Well, I guess I'm supposed to tag five other people, but I don't think I know 5 other bloggers. Oh well. :):) It was fun for me to do anyway.

Easter 2008

Here are some pictures from "Easter" 2008. Actually, Easter morning I never got the camera out. It was all I could do to get all the kids ready, and try to get there early to sing in the choir. Phew! So, I had the kids wear their spring outfits again today and made a point of getting some pictys. Here are the cutest ones.

Ski Trip 2008

Spring Break was almost a month ago, but I am just now finding a second to post about it. We had a lot of fun. We left first thing Saturday morning and got out to Peoa, UT just after lunch. There is a really fun rec center in a neighboring town with an awesome, indoor pool. We all went swimming that afternoon, even Grandma Call!!! (The water was like 90 degrees.)



Julia's first swim

Sunday we went to church with my cousins Melissa and Emily and their families. We even survived the three hours of church with sacrament meeting last. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. That afternoon we had a big family dinner at Aunt Julie's house. Since Tim first met my family, he has always been so impressed with how generous and hospitable all my extended family is. This was another example of that. Aunt Julie must have had about 40 people over at her house for dinner. Uncle Ara & Aunt Carla, Aunt Glenna, and Aunt Tami & Uncle Duane (who thankfully brought up Maude and Lola - Lindsay had been sorely outnumbered by the boys. Both Melissa and Emily have two little boys.) all came up from Provo. It was such a nice afternoon. Did I mention that I got a 3 hour nap? Ahhhhhhh. Heavenly. After dinner, some of us got involved in a massive "Shanghai" game. It was Call Family fun at its finest. So fun. Later that night, Dave and Jacob and Jared made it from Flagstaff. It was so great to see them.

Monday, Melissa and Emily took us to a great sledding hill. It was more like a bowl with hills on all sides. The kids had fun. These pictures were taken by Emily. Aren't they gorgeous?

(technical difficulties on the pictures. Check back later...)

Finally, Wednesday through Friday the three older kids and Dad went skiing, while Wesley, Julia, and I hung out together. It was cousin heaven for the kids. Grandpa went all three days. Grandma even braved the slopes the first day. Then, on Thursday and Friday, Don was able to join us with Mikaela, Hudson, and Dalton. It was so fun to see them. We even had a big cousins' sleep-over on Friday night.

Then, Saturday it was back home and back to reality. What a fun trip.


Here are some pictures:


The happy couple who make it all possible: Grandma and Grandpa Call


Me with Julia and Wesley going up the gondola (or "high sled" as Wesley called it) to meet up with the ski-ers at the end of the day


Let's see if I get this: Jacob, Samuel, Jared, Miles, Lindsay, Grandpa (and Uncle Dave in the background) They had so much fun.


On the way up the gondola: Lindsay, Samuel, Jacob


Jared, Miles, Uncle Dave

Me and Julia, how cute is that baby? :):)

Friday night when we overtook this little Mexican Restaurant in Kamas. Do I have cute nieces and nephews or what? Just look at that Dalton. So cute!!!

The girls' sleepover

The boys' sleepover

Julia's Three Month Pictures

Here are the pictures we got of Julia when she was three months old in her blessing gown. I know, I know. I went a little overboard on the whole gown thing. I just couldn't resist.

The Grames Family's Visit

From Saturday, March 8 through Thursday, March 13, Aunt Catherine, Uncle Keith, Emma, and Tate Grames came for a visit. Uncle Keith recently got a new job, so they had a week off. We were so excited when they decided to come visit us for that week. It was so fun. With all the kids (7 between the two families), we didn't get out and do much, but the cousins sure had a lot of fun just hanging out together. We love you, Grames Family.
We realized on the last night they were here that we hadn't taken any pictures. So sad. We made up for it, though, by taking 30 pictures the morning they left...
Here are some pictures from their visit:

Lindsay and Emma got to have a cousins' sleepover!! Emma fell asleep by about 8 o'clock, but Lindsay was still happy to sleep down there with her.

The Future Kindergarteners!!

No comments about the matching double chins, please!! :):)

The ones who didn't get to go to school: Tate, Wesley, Samuel, Emma

Latest Happenings

I haven't posted a blog for a long time. No real excuse. I check everyone else's religiously. I guess I am a blog stalker. Funny. Well, let me glance through some recent photos and see what looks interesting.

Ah yes, this is a picture of what we like to refer to as "Triple F": Forced Family Fun. It was two Saturdays ago, and it was in the upper 60's. We thought we'd go for a family hike. Sounds like fun, doesn't it? Well, it was pretty fun (despite some very dramatic complaints from my favorite almost 8 year old boy...). We hiked to a sort of high point to enjoy our picnic lunch. Seriously, out of nowhere hurricane force winds (at least I know that the almost 8 year old boy comes by the drama honestly...:)) start blowing. I had Julia in the Baby Bjorn, but I was still freaking out because dust started blowing everywhere, too. You'd think by child #5 I'd learn to keep myself relatively calm during tense moments. Oh well. My freaking out panicked Wesley, Samuel, and Miles. Sorry, Tim!! We made it down okay. This picture's at the end of the trail when we realized we hadn't documented Julia's first hike. She'll be the native Coloradoan of the family.

This picture explains itself: a delighted 5 year old, his baby sister in the Bumbo (notice it's not on a high surface...) Her poor little nose is all goopy from the Aquaphor I was swabbing on it all day to protect it from all the goobies. She's feeling better now. Phew!!

Really. Have you ever known a 2 year old who could raise one eyebrow? He's such a funny little kid. He can also chew gum forever. It's hilarious.

Julia's Baby Blessing

February 3, 2008 was a special day for the Owens Family. Both sets of grandparents and other dear friends joined us for Julia's Blessing. It was a memorable day. She was a little fussy when Tim first brought her to the front of the congregation, but she settled down nicely (with the help of a pacy) for her blessing. Tim did a nice job. We are so grateful to be able to welcome this sweet spirit into our home. We think we might have a gentle soul this time around. We are definitely due one. :):)

Here are some more pictures:

getting dressed

Mommy looks a little tired here with me

the Owens women

the adorable cake Mommy got at Sam's Club

Miles' Day with Frankie the Frog

In Miles' Second Grade class, everyone gets a chance to bring home Frankie the Frog for the weekend. You're supposed to take Frankie with you on all of your adventures for the weekend. We, of course, didn't know about this until Monday morning, so we chronicled the "adventures" Miles had with Frankie on Monday night from 9-10pm. It was still, all things considered, a fairly eventful hour. Lucky for us, we still have Tim's parents visiting, so we had that excitement to chronicle.

Here are the pictures:

Doing spelling homework with Frankie

Frankie with Miles and Grandma Helen

Frankie with Miles and baby sister, Julia

Wesley Michael Owens

Wesley at 6 months
Wesley at 2 1/2 years old with what looks like cornstarch (see story below)
smeared in the background
Hmmmm, maybe it's time to clean off the scanner.

How do I describe my Wesley? So sweet, so cute, so seriously funny. So stubborn, so willful, so difficult. Bless his little heart. Somedays he's lucky he's so cute. He'd get in a lot more trouble if his sweet eyes weren't so good at melting my heart. Then, there's his hair. I got away with not cutting it at all for the first 15 months of his life. But you can't have a grandpa who's a barber (Grandpa Joe, Tim's Dad) and have long hair, even if it is adorable and curly. So, I got used to getting it cut. After the original haircut, I thought the curls wouldn't grow back. But alas, his hair is still completely curly but only in the back. It gets so puffy somedays that it doesn't matter if I comb it or not. It just starts taking on a life of its own. I'm always getting comments like, "Wow. What a head of hair on that little guy!" (Can you relate, Leslie and Cath? FYI-my absolutely adorable nephews Van and Tate both have the tons-o-hair thing going on, too!!)

Anyway, this photo was taken last Monday when all the kids were home from school for MLK's b-day. I was feeling like I was getting so much done. I got on the treadmill for my jog. Lindsay made waffles for everyone. #2 and #3 (Miles and Samuel) were keeping busy. I should have known things didn't bode well for me. I come downstairs to find my Wesley like this. At first I didn't even know what it was. Then, I discovered my now-almost-empty box of cornstarch. I was so proud of myself (Did I mention that my New Year's Resolution is to learn how to control my anger?). I just forced out a laugh and ran for the camera.

Yesterday I had my pile of mending out and was sitting at the sewing machine. He wanted to help but was supposed to be sitting at the table finishing he dessert. So I said, "Finish up, and then, you can come help me." He ran back and finished and then came bounding down. "Can I help now?" "Honey, your hands are all sticky. Go wash your hands and then you can help." "But I can't!" "What? Why can't you?" He pauses, and you can literally see the wheels turning. "Because...I'm a little bit big. But, I'm a little bit little." So adorable. He's right, too.

And....how can I post without a picture of my dolly? Here's a picture of her in the sweet outfit her Aunt Leslie sent her. You can sort of see what I mean about Wesley's hair from this picture.

Our Bathing Beauty

This is funny that I'd actually post about bathing Julia. I think she's had all of three baths in her 8 weeks of life. Poor 5th child. Bath time pictures are so adorable. I just had to post a few.

Being properly modest...:) Actually, the only way to keep her calm and secure is to keep a warm cloth on her little belly.

The gang's all here.

Fun in the Snow

Okay, so one of the reasons we liked Colorado was that it has all four seasons, but (at least down here in what they call the Front Range) the four seasons aren't all that extreme. People kept saying. "Yes, it snows, but then it melts off the next day." Or things like, "We hardly ever get a white Christmas, and if we do, it's melted off right after." Not that we mind the snow. I mean, this is a half Buffalo, NY family. (Samuel is constantly running outside in freezing temperatures without his coat yelling to me, "Mom, I don't need a coat. Remember? I'm a Buffalo boy like Daddy!" He was, after all, born in Buffalo like his Daddy.) So, last year, when we got pummelled with a foot or two of snow every Friday for about 4 weeks in a row, we were all delighted. I think it was during Uncle Dan's visit around Christmas that we came up with the idea of pulling the kids behind Tim's junker car in tubes on the snow-packed roads around our neighborhood. Now, before you go looking up the number to Child Protective Services, we go slowly. And only once has Tim taken a corner so fast that it whiplashed Miles all the way around the car by the front wheel...:):) Let's just say it's moderately safe, wholesome family recreation.


Here are some pictures from this year's excursion. Now that I think about it. I'm pretty sure I posted some from last year's trip, but I'll save you the bother of scrolling down through a year's worth of posts (which for me is really only about 10...) and put them here.

Lindsay and Wesley

Samuel and Miles

Remember this December?

Catherine, baby Matthew, Daniel, Caroline, Dad or Don, Jr., Douglas, Christopher, David (how could you not recognize that dark skin?)

Okay. My siblings (and there are a lot of them: 6 brothers and 1 sister) will definitely remember this. It was one of our favorite Christmas traditions. When we woke up on Christmas morning, we'd all dive into Mom and Dad's bed and wait for everyone else. In this picture, I count 8 of us, but I can't tell if it's Dad in the middle with us (and we're all impatiently waiting for big brother#1, Don) or if that's actually Don in there with us, and we've just plain kicked out Mom and Dad. Either way, it's a priceless photo with fond memories attached. Mom, don't be too mad that I absconded it. I'll give it back soon. Promise. :):)

Merry Christmas, everyone. I miss you all.