The first of many

May 19, 2013

Dear Jonas and Clara,
     We've been getting ready for this day for quite some time. Our brainwashing efforts have finally paid off, woo-hoo!  It's no coincidence that you've asked for backpacking gear for the past few Christmas' and Birthdays, and yet you've never even been backpacking!  We planted the seeds and boy did they ever take root.  We've successfully turned you into children who love hiking, camping, fishing, snowboarding (Jonas), shooting, and now... backpacking.

Papa had a four day weekend so he planned on taking a little trip to the mountains.  We were all going to go, but it got too crazy and he ended up just taking the Bigs (aka Jonas and Clara).  He really only wanted to take one child because that would have made life so much easier, but I begged him to take the both of you.  You've been fighting horribly lately and I don't like it one bit.  It was my hope (and prayer) that this would be a good memory for the two of you and bring you closer together.  It was a great trip, but there were more than a few mishaps along the way.

Mishap #1- Snow

Eek!  I so wasn't expecting that.  I actually had you both in shorts and t-shirts when I dropped you off at Papa's work.  He looked at me like I was crazy and told me to go back home and get pants and jackets for you guys while he took you to the store to get last minute supplies.   On the first night out on the trail you warmed up your feet by the fire and attempted to dry off your wet clothes.  I didn't pack enough socks though and Jonas' caught on fire while they were drying off.  Hahaha!  Oops, my bad.

Mishap #2- Pants

The pants I went home to get were all Jonas' because Clara didn't have any that would work for camping.  Well, they didn't exactly fit the best so Papa had to make suspenders for Clara out of bungee cords and Jonas wore Papa's belt.  Oops, my bad again. 

Mishap #3- Um?

My poor daughter.  I guess I never properly taught her how to use the restroom in the wild.  The results were too sad to reveal, but we've since fixed the issue.  Oops, my bad again.

The rest of the trip was a huge success though!  The two of you came home beaming.  You hiked a total of 18 miles in 3 days!  You hiked through snow, the charred remains of a forest fire, through a gorgeous valley, across a river, and down the mountain.  Papa and I are so proud of you!  

Once you got back to town he took you straight to Baskin Robbins for a banana split.  You looked and smelled so lovely, everyone was staring at you, wondering if you were homeless I'm sure.  I remember after the first time Papa and I went backpacking together we went and got a banana split too.  Oh my, it was heavenly!  It tasted so good after eating freeze-dried camping meals for four days!  As soon as we were done with our banana split we went to In-N-Out Burger for a hamburger and fries.  Delicious!  After your ice cream you got to come home to your sweet, sweet mama though, and to the littles who missed you bunches.  

I'm so glad you enjoy nature with us!  Love, Mama

Field trips

May 14, 2013

Dear Jonas and Atticus,

     I love going on field trips and participating in the classroom for my kids, but with four children and working part time it makes it difficult.  The other day I lucked out and Jonas' teacher didn't have any parent volunteers to help out with the field trip to the Folk Art Museum (which I love, love, love).  She came down to my class to ask if there was any way I could go with them.  I talked to the principal, Ms. Davis and she said it was a-okay.  What a sweet deal, I got paid to take a field trip with my son!  It was great having one-on-one time all day with such a dynamite kid.  My favorite part of the Museum is the Girard wing, I never get tired of it.  This is the only picture I took, but at least I got one:  

A few days later I had a field trip with my PreK class and I got to take Atticus along with me.  Yeah!  We went to Las Golondrinas, which was so cool. From their website: El Rancho de las Golondrinas is a living history museum located on 200 acres in a rural farming valley just south of Santa Fe, New Mexico. The museum, dedicated to the history, heritage and culture of 18th and 19th century New Mexico, opened in 1972. Original colonial buildings on the site date from the early 1700s. In addition, historic buildings from other parts of northern New Mexico have been reconstructed at Las Golondrinas. Villagers clothed in the styles of the times show how life was lived on the frontier in early New Mexico.  

Atticus, you were such a good boy and blended right in with the PreK kids.  I'm so excited that you'll be in my class next year and I can be one of your teachers!  Today we practiced having you call me Ms. Meshan instead of Mom and you thought it was hilarious.

I love you both my sweet boys.
Mama

NDI star

May 12, 2013

Dear Jonas,

     You had your end of the year NDI (National Dance Institute) performance tonight and I was blown away!  The choreography, the live band, the costumes... all fantastic.  Grandpa Steve came to town just to see you perform and he thoroughly enjoyed it too.  We went out for ice cream afterwards to reward you for a job well done.  

Do you remember when we moved to Santa Fe at the beginning of the school year and you found out that the fourth graders participate in NDI?  You didn't know anything about it except that there would be a huge performance at the end of the school year in front of multiple live audiences (8 to be exact) with thousands of people watching you.  When you brought the permission slip home you begged me not to sign it, a tearful plea that had me considering for a split second to grant your wish.  But then I thought, "this will be good for him", and handed you back the form with my signature at the bottom.   

You ended up loving NDI and each week after practice you would come home and excitedly show me the new dance moves you were learning.  At family gatherings you were more than happy to perform as well.  The week of the actual performances you were exhausted, but came home beaming everyday. Lesson learned?  Hard things are indeed good for you.

Love, 

Mama

Oh man, I love this kid

April 24, 2013

Dear Jonas,

     Oh my goodness, I stinkin love you so much.  I love that you're smart, funny, generous, sensitive ...and a little nerdy.

You started wearing a sweatband to soccer practice, you know, just because.  The other boys on the team teased you to no end about it, but you didn't care.  The coaches son, Mr. Cool, teased you the most and the day after you stopped wearing your sweatband, he came to practice with one on.  

I don't get people.  They're rude and mean.  

You don't get people either.  You don't have very many friends here in Santa Fe, but you seem content enough.  Your best friend is still Lizzy (from Farmington) and you have playdates with her every chance you get.  The last time you had a playdate the two of you were talking about how you used to have a little gang of friends at Apache (Elementary School) and how much fun it was.  You both kind of feel like loners at school now.  Oh how I wish you still went to the same school.

You'll be fine, I know that.  You're strong.  It makes my mama heart sad to see you struggle though.  I want you to be happy.  I'm sorry for not always being there for you.  Being the oldest I put a lot of pressure on you when what you need the most is love and support.  I read a quote the other day that made me think of you and my roll as your mother:

"It's not our job to toughen children up to face a cruel and heartless world.  It's our job to raise children who will make the world a little less cruel and heartless."

- L.R. Knost

Thanks for being my sweet boy.  I'm so happy that you were born first so that you can be a good example to your siblings.

Love, Mama

two boys and a pickup truck

April 13, 2013

Dear Atticus and Jonas,
     Somewhere along the route home I spotted a sa-weet photo opp.  I just had to flip a U and go back to it.  I mean come on, would you be able to pass this run down, chipped wood, rusted up, red and turquoise beauty?  I think not.

You guys were really happy to stop, as evidenced by the following photo:

I told you the sooner you smiled, the sooner we'd be done.  Key the cheesiness:

I never could get a good picture of the two of you, but the middle picture below might be my favorite because it's classic Jonas.

Of course Atticus was willing to smile once he was the only one in the spotlight.  Mr. Ford and company, are you seeing this?  Feel free to send me the royalties from this classic picture of an all American little boy sitting on a Ford pick-up truck at a farm in Utah.

Just look at that face.  I can hardly stand the cuteness.

I sure love my boys,
Mama

Dr. Seuss Day

Dear Children,
     Today was Dr. Seuss Day at school.  Last night we decided you were going to be Thing 1, Thing 2 and Cindy Lou Who.  After you were in bed I ran to the store to buy blue hair spray and then I made the signs for your shirts.

Jonas and Clara were super excited to go to school with blue hair, but Sonora wasn't quite sure of her hair-do and started to cry when it was time to go to class because she was embarrassed.

Thankfully her teacher came out in the hall and told her how cute she looked and that they had been waiting for Cindy Lou Who to come to school.

Happy Dr. Seuss Day!

Love, Mama

P.S.  When did Dr. Seuss get his own day?  We never had it when I was a kid.  It's weird.

Meeting your teachers

August 15, 2012

Dear Children,
School starts in a few days so today we went to meet your teachers.  I think it's going to be a great year!!

Sonora with her 1st grade teacher, Ms. Miyagawa 

 Clara with her 3rd grade teacher, Ms. Jorden

Jonas with his 4th grade teacher, Ms. Jurewich

The last picture cracks me up.  Better not get too close, your new teacher might bite!

Love you all, best of luck in the new school year.
Mama

F & S Campout

May 20, 2012

Dear Jonas,

Last weekend was the church Father and Son Campout.  Papa couldn't make it home in time and you were bummed.  Luckily, Grandpa Steve had to go for his ward because he's the Bishop.  He decided to take you with him and Eli and Ezra even came down to join in the fun.  You had a fabulous time.

This picture makes me laugh.  Grandpa Steve ordered you all down on one knee to pose.

I sure love my dad.  He's such a good guy.

Love, mama

Snowboarding

March 24, 2012

Dear Jonas,
Yesterday you went snowboarding for your first time!  You earned a very elite reading award at school and because we're so proud of you Papa took you for some special "bro time".  He said you did really well.  I told him to make sure and take pictures, but he didn't.  Ugh, dad's just don't get it sometimes.  He did take a cute video of you, however, so I guess I'll forgive him.   You had a blast and came home tuckered out and fully satisfied with your first boarding adventure.

Today Papa went snowboarding again, but this time it was a mancation.  Uncle Shawn took the picture.

Pretty soon you'll be shredding the mountain like a pro.  Okay, maybe not a  pro, but I'm sure it won't be   long before you're able to keep up with the "men".

Love, mama

Boys will be boys

Jaunuary 16, 2012

Dear Jonas,
     Sometimes I'm amazed at your depth, knowledge, and your kind, sensitive spirit.  Other times I feel very frustrated by your desire to wrestle and rough house, the constant nagging to have good manners, and your need to always be right.  I have to remind myself that you're only 9 and besdies that, boys will be boys.

I also remind myself of all the crazy boy stories of Papa's and your uncles and I tell myself this is all mild right now.  I should be bracing myself for what's to come.  I remember a time when your Papa blew up a couch with his friends in High School.   It wasn't his couch.  It wasn't even his friend's couch.  It was Travis' mom's couch and they were borrowing it while they lived in the Frat house.  One day Travis' mom called Grandma Cindy to see if she could get the couch back.  "Um, well... Judy, the boy's blew up your couch," Grandma Cindy admitted to her.   Instead of getting angry (maybe she did when her son got home?) Judy just laughed and said in her sweet little voice, "Oh, those boys".

Ah yes, boys. You were drawing in your church notebook a few Sunday's ago and I stole a peek to see what you were up to.  You know the notebook I'm talking about, right?  The one that says, "Private.  Keep Out!  Clara, this means you.  I know you're looking"  on the cover.  You had drawn a picture of a snowman and underneath the snowman were what looked like snowballs.  The caption at the top of the page however, said, "snowball poop."  You and papa chuckled and I gave you the evil eye.

The next Sunday I saw you drawing a house and the top was labeled, " My Dream House".   Throughout church I would glimpse over and see what you were doing next and there was page after page of hopes and dreams... My Dream Car... My Dream Backyard... My Dream Job... My Dream Money ($1,100,104,200.00)...

The speaker was concluding their talk and as he did he bore his testimony.  You casually glanced up for a moment and then quickly went back to drawing.  When the speaker was done you nudged me and held out your notebook for me to see.  As I looked at it I got a little teary eyed.  The top of the page said, "But over all of these I would rather live with my Heavenly Father."  Underneath you drew a picture of two people floating on clouds.  Thank you, my son, for giving me a glimpse of your soul.

Love, Mama

Scouty Mcbutterpants

November 16, 2011

Dear Jonas,
Good job on getting your Bobcat and Wolf badges for Scouts!

When you first started Scouts you had a leader who didn't seem to really care what was going on and then you got one who didn't seem to have any idea what was going on.  You weren't able to attend Scout camp because of our forced move.  Papa was so busy with school and work that he didn't know what was going on with Scouts and I was busy being a single mom to four kids so I didn't know what was going on either.

Well, because of all this when we moved to Farmington your new Scout leader told you there was no way you were going to be able to earn your Wolf before you turned 9.  You came home devastated and crying.  I told you to dry your tears and prove her wrong.  Don't ever let someone tell you you can't accomplish something.  If you want it bad enough then DO IT.  We worked on Scouts everyday until your Birthday and you succeeded in getting your award.

We're proud of you.
Love, Mama

Splash Park Papa

July 17, 2011

Dear Children,

Your papa has made up a new game that you absolutely love.  Instead of bathing you in the bathtub he puts you in the shower and then makes up all kinds of crazy "Splash Park" related games.

Tickets are required and after he collects them the fun begins.  The top ticket is Nora's and then Clara and Jonas'.

I love it because you all beg for him to bathe you instead of me. I'm alright with that.  No, really.
Love, Mama

Singing loud for all to hear

June 5, 2011

Dear Jonas,

For Young Womens tonight the leaders and I took all the girls to the hospital to sing and hand out balloons.  I asked my kiddos if any of them wanted to come spread some cheer and you were the only taker.  Yes, you enjoy singing that much.

At first you were hesitant being with all those teenage girls, but you warmed up real fast.  You seemed to be a-okay with the female ooglings.

I hope you always keep your love of singing (but don't get too comfortable with the female variety).

Love, Mama

Do the Smarty Pants Dance!

May 16, 2011 8:05pm
Dear Jonas,
     Holy smokes, we're sure proud of you!  A few weeks ago your teacher nominated you to be considered for the GATE (Gifted and Talented Education) program.  You took the test and we've been patiently (or not so patiently) awaiting the results.   Well... we just found out you were accepted!

The day we received your letter Papa went to check the mail around 8:00pm.  All the kids had their jammers on and I was tucking everyone in.  When Papa came home with the letter we were so excited that Papa took you out for an ice cream right then and there, jammers and all.

Good job you little smarty pants.  Love, Mama

Germs are scary.

April 02, 2011

Dear Jonas,

The other night Papa gave the Family Night lesson.  He talked about proper hygiene and germs.  He showed you slides of different bacteria and pictures of diseases that can occur if we're not careful.  Pictures like this:

Necrotizing Fasciitis (aka Flesh Eating Bacteria)

It was a great lesson, you all were very intrigued and he got the point across quite well, but oh my goodness.  Those pictures were disturbing.  So much so that you couldn't go to sleep that night because you were too scared.  You kept thinking you felt something crawling on you, or you would ask me to come in and examine a bump on you, wondering if it was a germ.

Poor boy.  Hope it didn't scar you for life.

I love you Jo bug.  Mama

Oh Brother

Dear Jonas and Atticus,

     I love that the two of you are good buds (most of the time), despite being 6 years apart in age.  You each have your own bed, but you often request to sleep together.  

  

 Even though it takes awhile for things to quite down and for the two of you to fall asleep, how could I possibly say no to such brotherly bonding?

Before I go to bed I usually check on Atticus because he rarely has a blanket on from thrashing around.  I was surprised when I checked on him the other night and he was tucked in with the blanket pulled up to his chin.

I asked Jonas if he had fixed the blanket and he said yes because he was worried Atticus would get cold.  He also said that he gave Atticus a goodnight kiss.

Thanks for looking after your little brother and I hope the two of you continue to adore one another.

Love, Mama

Always right

March 15, 2011

Dear Jonas,
     You informed me the other night that Albert Einstein's first words were, "the soup is too hot".  "Really Jonas?  I don't think so," was my reply.  After we debated for awhile I decided to look it up on the Internet.

Ahem.  Apparently Albert Einstein didn't speak until he was four years old and his first words were, "the soup is too hot".  Must you always be right?  Just like your papa.  The only difference is that he's MUCH more humble when he's right and I'm wrong.  Hopefully that will come with age?

I'm glad you soak up knowledge like a sponge.  Mama

Somewhere over the Rainbow

Dear Jonas,

   Tonight my friend Veronica put hair tinsel (see photo) in all of the teenage girl's hair from church and she put it in Clara's too because she's super nice like that.  

     

On the way home Jonas said, "Ah man, I wish I could get that in my hair!  It's so cool!"

I asked what color you would get and you responded with some hesitation, "sparkly rainbow."

Ahem.  Sparkly Rainbow?  Really? 

What's not to love?  

It reminded me of when you picked out a sparkly bracelet during Bro Time with Papa and of the time (about a year ago) I asked you your favorite color and you timidly replied, "sparkly rainbow".

You now say your favorite color is gold, but I have a feeling that's not completely true.

We love you Jo man.

Love, Mama

Well I'll Be Darned!

February 9, 2011

Dear Jonas,
     Remember when you got baptized on Christmas Day and how great it was?  Remember that you had a goal to read the Book of Mormon by yourself before you got baptized and when you did we were all so proud?  Remember I was a slacker and you totally showed me up?
    
Remember one of your New Year Resolutions for 2011 is to read the Pearl of Great Price?  Remember your other goal is to have better manners?  Oh, you don't want to talk about that one?  Oops, okay.  Moving on...


Well, I just want you to know how proud I am to be your mom.  I came into your room last night and this is what I found:

You started reading all on your own.  I sure am one lucky mama.

Love you bunches.

"Bro Time"

February 17, 2010

Dear Jonas, 

You recently cashed in some of your reward dollars to go on a date with Trey daug. I asked where they were going for their date and Trey corrected me, "Actually we're not going on a date, we're having bro time". 

So, "bro time" it was. They decided on Chuck E. Cheese's and ate pizza and played games. When they got home (WAY past Jonas' bedtime) Trey told me they had so much fun and that it was long overdue. Jonas was glowing with happiness when he walked in the door, it was so cute. After Jo went to bed I asked how it went. Trey said that Jonas was very well behaved and he seemed so grown up. They chatted about life and being "boys" and they already planned their next outing.

Chuck E. Cheese's... where a kid can be a kid!!

The loot: a squishy lizard (Jonas loves animals), a top (he's fascinated with them), stickers (for his sisters), and a bracelet (hmm, just because). 

When Jonas picked out the bracelet Trey said, "That's so nice that you're getting stickers and a bracelet for your sisters!" Jonas replied, "No, just the stickers are for them. The bracelet is for me." Of course Trey tried his best to persuade Jonas to give the bracelet away, but Jonas was adamant that he keep it for himself. Well, alrighty then. Trey let him keep it and tried not to make a big deal of it. After all, Trey has a bracelet and a necklace. They're just not as "girly" as this one. You can't tell from the picture, but it was glittery with pinks, blues, and purples. Special.

I'm really liking these dates we've started going on with our kids. It makes them feel loved and it helps us as parents get to know them better and assess their needs. Thanks to my dear friend Danika who always gives me good ideas on how to be a better parent!

Love, Me