The Fitz Fam

To the Pole and Back

2012-01-29T20:18:00.000-08:00

December started out appropriately with a trip to the North Pole via The Polar Express. We started by getting Gma and Gpa and driving four hours to AZ. Then we got in our pjs and boarded the train. Then we enjoyed hot chocolate and snicker doodles while traveling through space and time to get to the North Pole. Santa got on the train and gave all the kids a bell. Then we spent another few minutes with Mrs. Clause and when we got off the train we were back in AZ and rode the four hours back home. It was a really wonderful and fun trip! Except for when Rachel decided to throw up the whole way home. But it really was ironic because I had been praying that we could get through all of our important events without sick kids. I specifically asked if we could avoid being sick the day of the train ride. I didn't think this prayer was going to be answered so literally. But it was a blessing in disguise cause it was past time to take apart the carseats and wash them. And no one else in the family got sick after her. That was the biggest miracle of all. We must have picked up some magic in the North Pole.

Only Adam got a picture with Santa because of course Rachel was in the background screaming, "I don't want to see Santa!"

Later, when we asked R what she wanted for Christmas, she replied, "I already got a present from Santa." It was so sweet. She did get another present on Christmas morning though :)

In case you want to know what the North Pole looks like

Thanks for the fun trip, Gma and Gpa!

Christmas Time

2012-01-29T19:59:00.000-08:00

This was a really great Christmas. We had fun the whole month of December. Here are some phrases that were very common in our household at Christmas:

The movie of choice this year was definitely The Grinch. So there was also a lot of singing the Grinch songs. And Adam had his own interpretation that I thought was funny. After all of the "ah hoo dorays" or whatever it is they say, I think the correct words are "Bring Your Light". But, Adam liked to say "Bring Your Wife".

Speaking of marriage, Rachel got a little mixed up with Married and Mary. Now any girl or bride with a veil or head covering is considered, "Married". "Is that Married?" she will say. Just tonight we looked at our wedding picture and R glanced over and said, "Married?". I haven't had the heart to correct her because it's too dang cute. And then she always asks, "Where's the baby Jesus?"

We also got a little mixed up with the ornaments. I had just explained that things that make music are called instruments. Well, since a few of our ornaments play music, Rachel insisted on calling ornaments=instruments.
As a side note, last year Rachel flung her "baby's first christmas" ornament across the room and it shattered. I cried and they didn't touch the ornaments after that. This year, they were taught how to handle ornaments and they did a good job. But somehow Adam's matching "baby's first christmas" ornament found its way off the tree and it got smashed too. This time, however, I just shrugged and figured it was meant to be. I really didn't like them in the first place, and I figure I can just order some online that I like better and make sure they are shatterproof this time!

The last phrase we heard quite often around here was "I don't want to see Santa!" This was most often uttered after the question, 'What do you want for Christmas?" I don't know why Rachel decided to not like Santa this year, but I blame the Rudolph movie. That Santa is just mean. However, she LOVES the Grinch. Go figure.

More Christmas posts to come...and then maybe I can talk about real life again!

2012-01-15T22:01:00.000-08:00

The End

Once the leftovers were gone, we decided it was time to get ready for Christmas...too bad we still had to come home and do our tree. But, we finally learned how to do this airport thing...

Thanksgiving in STL

2012-01-15T21:51:00.000-08:00

The Birthday Party: Josie is 3!

Not that we needed an excuse to do more partying :)

Ring around the Rosie never looked this good

Thanksgiving in STL

2012-01-15T21:46:00.000-08:00

The Zoo, or: My Everyday Life

Thanksgiving in STL

2012-01-15T21:40:00.000-08:00

The Day Of:

Those who helped stuff the turkey were not too grossed out and were still able to eat it

mostly

josie recovered from her "finger in bottle" incident

It's always risky to let a non Livingston do the pie trick, but luckily it turned out okay

The 50 cent piece game was good in theory

but it's a lot more fun to burn off pie by doing laps on the table

Thanksgiving in STL

2012-01-15T21:33:00.001-08:00

Cousins and Feeding Ducks aka: Wild Life

Thanksgiving in STL

2012-01-15T21:28:00.000-08:00

Missionaries at the Home Storage Center:

My parents are service missionaries at the home storage center. That includes, but is not limited to selling people food storage. So we got to go have a tour and some little helpers canned some black beans.

We didn't cook them for Thanksgiving though :)

Thanksgiving in STL

2012-01-15T21:14:00.000-08:00

The Next Generation of Ping Pong and Fooseball Players

Thanksgiving in STL

2012-01-15T21:07:00.000-08:00

The Leaves! aka Manual Labor :)

I was taking a nap during all this fun--bummer!

Thanksgiving in STL

2012-01-15T20:59:00.000-08:00

The Airplane Ride:

1. Get to the gate early so you have time to practice riding the moving walkways

2. Buckle Up

3. Enjoy your snacks--too bad they weren't honey roasted peanuts :)

4. Hold hands with your brother and...

make all the flight attendants go "awww"

5. Have a layover and watch your favorite:

The Grinch!

It was the middle of the night, and we had more luggage than arms, but these two kids did awesome! They didn't complain about anything and they slept just the right amount on the planes! The only bummer was that they were too tired to properly greet their grandparents, but they're pretty forgiving :)

2/3

2012-01-08T11:58:00.000-08:00

We went on 3 trips in November. The second was a quick 36 hour visit to Utah. Because Royce and Heather had an 11/11/11 party. And if someone has an 11/11/11 party--you go. We also stopped by Payson to spend some time with our favorite Trumans. And Ry put Christmas lights up at "payson house". It was pretty magical.

We went to temple square where you can see this statue of Christ. In typical fashion, Rachel kept saying, "I don't want to see Jesus. I don't like Jesus." Sigh

Taken about 2 seconds after hitting the road. Totally worn out, but content with their pumpkins from Lucy and Spencer

I Admit It

2012-01-08T11:39:00.000-08:00

I cry at weddings. And this one was no exception. We were happy to hear that Adrianna was getting married. We were even happier that it was in southern california so we could go to DL the same weekend. Congrats Adrianna and Kelly!

2011's Trip

2012-01-04T14:15:00.000-08:00

2011 would not have been complete without a trip to Disneyland. We were going early November anyway, and were glad to find out that Ry's whole family could come with us. Lots of people ask us how we "do Disneyland." Do we have any secrets, etc? Well, here's a close look at how we spend two days at the park. And guess what?--I bet it's just like how you do it too :)

But we do have a knack at finding Mickey Mouse within the first 5 minutes of being in the park. That was good because I told the kids that if they got rid of their diapers that we could go to MM's house. Good thing we saw him or they might have believed that he actually lives there!

First Ride of the Trip: Peter Pan

Dumbo:

There is nothing Rachel loves more than a Merry Go Round. Nothing.

They're good, but they're not that good...

Rapunzel was a must...

Casey Jr. was not a long line, but Adam couldn't wait to go on the train!

Mr. Toad's Wild Ride: Rachel thought it was too wild. "Drive more safely mom"

The only low part of the trip: Rain! But we were more prepared for it than we've ever been.

But rain did not dampen the autopia cars experience.

Dinner at Rainforest Cafe: Inside, warm, good food, entertainment for children? yes, please.

Day Two:
Start at Tarzan

Jungle Cruise:

California Adventure:

Gma's dream was to have a princess lunch...too bad Rachel acted scared, and Adam had an accident under the table. But at least they looked cute.

Later, Rachel told me that Cinderella was her favorite. I'm guessing it's because she came out last and was a little bit less scared :)

Oh, all we had to do was find another Merry Go Round. Now she's happy

They actually wanted to go on some scary rides...too bad they weren't quite tall enough--

I knew Adam needed to go to the bathroom because he risked missing the bumper cars to go. Luckily, we got to get our place in line back and had a great time bumping Rachel--with permission!

Okay, it takes a lot to impress me. But these pictures were painted in a few seconds with water and a broom. I was more than impressed.

Remember how they weren't tall enough? Well, Ryan plus boots, plus nice people on Splash Mountain found a way around that problem.

You would think that having three year olds on the teacups would slow us down. But amazingly enough, we developed a couple of offspring who love getting dizzy. We went faster than ever.

Even the hotel is fun:

So there you go. Until next year, Disneyland.

Sunbeams 1/1/12

2012-01-04T11:06:00.000-08:00

Our first day was a success! I expected at least some tears and fears...but they went right in to their class and when I picked them up they were wearing a paper crown and I heard stories about singing songs and throwing beanbags. I only wish I could've been a fly on the wall to see it :)

Halloween 4

2012-01-04T10:42:00.000-08:00

The Real Deal:

We didn't trick or treat too much, but we loved watching the neighborhood and giving out candy. I wish we had more people come!
Our neighbors put on a fabulous haunted carnival every year. They have several games and tons of good prizes. The kids kept wanting to play, but I felt bad because they gave us too many prizes. Rachel earned it though because she held a real palm sized cockroach for about 30 seconds!

And of course I don't have any more pictures!

Halloween 3

2012-01-04T10:28:00.000-08:00

Trunk or Treat:

Can you tell what we are? Probably not, so I'll tell you...Jesse and Woody. And Ry and I are kids...we put our names on our Jesse and Woody toys just so we don't lose them :)
If you still don't know who we are...watch Toy Story

Ry is attempting to blow a bubble

I thought this was the best yarn braid ever...too bad she didn't want to wear it ever again

They loved handing out candy. I asked R if she wanted to go get more candy. She said, "no, I want to give more to the kids"

Ryan was amused by the fact that R would carefully pick out one piece of candy for each kid and A would dump a whole handful in.
The kids are the perfect holiday age and we had a great time!

Magic Words

2012-01-02T03:55:00.000-08:00

Uncle Jeff, trying to get Adam to use his manners and ask for something politely:
Jeff: "Adam, what do you say?"
Adam: "Idunno"
Jeff: "What's the magic word?"
Adam: "Abracadabra!"

That's my boy.

12/31/11

2011-12-31T20:03:00.001-08:00

I just read my post from last new years. I am happy to know that I was so prophetic. 2011 was really jam packed with a lot of noteworthy things, but not too many of them are happy and uplifting, so I am more than happy to move into 2012. And I am glad that all I resolved to do was sustain and maintain. I barely achieved that.
This year I'm feeling a bit more ambitious. I'm planning on being more vibrant, and more energized to live my life. I will focus on PRIORITIES. God, my husband, my children, myself. I figure I can't really go wrong with that. And I am planning on being JOYFUL about all of it.
Bring on 2012!

Halloween 2

2011-12-18T21:23:00.000-08:00

How do you carve pumpkins with two three year olds without getting slimy or making a mess in your house? You go to Trader Joes and get a FREE pre gutted pumpkin and give the kids dull carving knives.

I did most of it, but Rachel carved this one spot for about 5 minutes. She would NOT let me take the knife from her

The one and only time she has gotten her face painted, and the guy had to have a skeleton mask on. Great.

Nursery Graduation

2011-12-18T21:08:00.000-08:00

Today was our kids' last day of nursery at church. Starting in January, they will officially be in the Sunbeam class. (I know--how did that happen?) So today, they had a little graduation. And yes, I cried the instant I saw them.

"Okay, I'll wear this and I'll go to this thing, but I don't have to be happy about it."

"I'll do anything for a sunbeam cookie"

"Yes, I'm still wearing this."

Adam gets his certificate from the Bishop

"Oh, finally someone gave me something I can play with"

I have shy kids, but I'm so glad that I have the only kid who will sing. We could hear Adam and one other kid while the rest stared blankly during their performance

Halloween 1

2011-11-15T15:21:00.001-08:00

We did a lot of Halloween stuff this year.I've already lost track of most of it. I complain about vegas a lot in terms of not having any family friendly things to do. But they came through at Halloween time.
Our first thing was a visit to the Gilcrease orchard to get pumpkins. The hay maze, apple cider doughnuts, and coloring projects were an extra good bonus too.

We didn't plan on staying as long as we did, and I didn't bring snacks. So we went to chipotle and the kids ate much more than I did!

Just For Laughs...

2011-11-11T08:10:00.000-08:00

Adam colored on his Cars chair with ink pen. I was explaining that it wouldn't come out.
Later, while reading the Book of Mormon I was trying to explain what baptism is. I said that we get clean like Jesus wants us to do. He said, "Maybe Jesus can clean my chair! I think he can, Mom!"

I think he can too, bud.

Rachel's Interview (9/1)

2011-11-10T08:53:00.000-08:00

Adam's Special Day

2011-11-10T08:50:00.000-08:00

For Adam's Special Day this year we went back to the Summerlin Hospital and visited the NICU where our parenthood adventure began. We brought some blankets by and gave them to a family who just had 27 week boy/girl twins. I know Adam and Rachel didn't understand this outing, but someday they will and I don't want them to ever forget how precious their lives are and these special people who took care of them 24 hours a day for 3 months.

The kids definitely had more fun running around outside. We did too. Even though it was August, it was a really nice day.

We went to get ice cream, and then opened Adam's present. They use these alligator puppets at story time and the kids love them. So I found ones that are exactly the same.

And...once upon a time we made these plates for our family to always use on birthdays and special occasions and such. They didn't come in time for Adam's day, but here is the boy one, and we'll use it next time :)

We did a video interview with him, but it didn't upload. So enjoy this one instead and hopefully I can get the other one to work later...ok it should be at the top.

Reunion #2

2011-11-09T08:40:00.000-08:00

Dr. Wilkes also helped get my kids here. When you are pregnant with twins, you get to go to the doctor a lot more often. Like every 2 weeks. And so you get to know each other pretty well. So we got to have another "doctor party". Too bad it was almost 100 degrees in October. But the kids could have ridden on this slide all day long...

Reunion #1

2011-11-08T11:35:00.000-08:00

This is Dr. D. He is the man responsible for getting our kids here. And every year, he has a big party for all "his kids". We love him!

Face Painting, Pony Rides, a Petting Zoo, and Bouncy Houses...do I need to say how much we loved this party?!

Adam as a dog? R has only consented to face painting once. But now, I think she is finally a fan.

Our kids were among the hundreds of twins at this reunion. But they were by far the cutest

2011-11-08T11:12:00.000-08:00

In October, we were so excited to make our third trip to Seattle-this time for Chad and Jamie's wedding. We had only met Jamie on one occasion before, but we loved her immediately. I am so glad that they got married so now I can have another girl along with me our trips together to keep those boys in check. Congrats!

This little ring bearer was just about the cutest kid I have ever seen (don't tell Adam)

We would've gone to the wedding regardless, but it was such a bonus to see my friends too! Thanks for letting us stay Paul and Suzi!

It was not the same without Melanie, but a mini SAM reunion was still great!

Shelly and Greg live there too...with their three cute kids and darling house! Wish we could have visited longer!

Buffet of Buffets

2011-11-08T10:33:00.000-08:00

Sometime over the summer, our Utah friends came down and we did this:

The Buffet of Buffets. 7 Buffets in 24 hours. I'll let you guess whose idea it was. There is a great description of the day here. And here are some more pictures. I have more pictures on another computer, but I can't procrastinate this post anymore, so those will have to wait. Sorry, Heather :)

I can honestly say that I haven't looked at food the same way since.

Joy School

2011-09-20T13:53:00.000-07:00

We are lucky to have good friends who wanted to do Joy School with me this year. (Preschool where you rotate between homes and mom). Today was their first day. I can't even tell you how excited I was to drop them off and have some time to myself. I mean...I can't tell you how excited they were to wear their backpacks and have fun.
And no, I cannot believe that they are old enough to do this. Where have the last three years gone?!

Utah Trip

2011-09-20T13:38:00.000-07:00

My parents were coming to Salt Lake so I decided to drive up with the kids and have a relaxing trip with family and friends. It was a trip. And it was with family. And it was with friends. But relaxing? Not even close. It's true that stuff happens in 3s. Good and Bad. This trip had plenty of both. We'll start with the bad...

1) It was my first time on a solo road trip. Just me and the kids. And we did great. Until St. George. And then a McDonald's parking lot. And a narrow spot. And two expeditions too close together. And crunch. But I handled it really well. The owners of the other car were super nice. They made me feel better and it wasn't too bad to come in and eat next to all the people who witnessed my stupidity. But it was still super embarrassing and dealing with insurance is never fun. Little did I know that this would be a highlight of the trip.

2). I got a stomach bug.
I don't have any pictures (thank goodness). But I was really sick. But I can't really complain about it because I had gma and gpa to take care of me and the kids. And great friends who took them to the movies. Plus, I was only sick for a little more than 24 hours which is always a good thing. Plus, I really prayed that no one else in the house would get sick and they didn't!

3) Part of the trip was staying in Park City for 3 days. Ryan came up for the labor day weekend which was fun. We spent labor day in park city. We tried to go on the Alpine slide, but the line was much too long, so we opted for the merry go round which had no line and the kids loved anyway. We also road the city bus to main street to do some window shopping. The kids were more excited by this than the merry go round. And it was free. Score.

At the bus stop

And then it was Tuesday. Ryan had gone home, but the rest of us geared up to try to go on the Alpine Slide again. We bought our tickets and got on the ski lift to go up to the top of the mountain to get to the slide. Weclung to the kids for dear life so they didn't fling themselves off the lift. They sat perfectly still and pointed to the flowers. Then, we got off. First Gma with Rach E. Then me. Then Gpa with Adam. And then we saw stumbling and rolling and finally there was a face plant into a bed of rocks. And then came the screaming and blood. And the first aid station and a trip to the ER...and 6 stitches! Gpa and Rachel spent the day together while Gma and I took Adam to get stitched up. He fell asleep for awhile, but woke up when the doctor poked him with a needle. Imagine that. So he got some medicine to sedate him for the stitches. He wasn't totally asleep, but out of it. And when he woke up he said, "Where's RachE? Did she get hurt?" And then later, "Where's Rachel and Gpa? I miss them." Cutest thing ever huh? And then he said, "I didn't get to go on the slide. It was gonna be a fun day." Sigh. So we brought him home, fed him tylenol and applesauce, put him to bed after watching movies, and called it a day.
But the next morning we checked out, and bravely decided to try the slide again. Adam was all excited. But--it was closed! Yeah. Imagine how I felt about that.

Are you ready for some good stuff? Me too...
1) My dad found my keys that had been missing for 6 months! They had been gone since the last time I saw my parents. We knew Adam had them last, but we couldn't figure out where he had stashed them. Gpa found them when I gave him the assignment of cleaning out the cooler. Being the thorough guy that he is, he unzipped the outside pocket and didn't find food, but my keys! So that was a needed piece of news. Even better was that Ry and I had not replaced anything yet. So we didn't have to shell out bucks for new mail keys or a new clicker. Yes!

2). We got to celebrate birthdays! Happy Birthday to Kay, Gpa, Kayla, Heather, Lori and Spencer!We especially had fun with Spencer for his third birthday! And what is better than a party with pizza, balloons, hide and seek and a sleepover with Cars pjs? Not much I'll tell you. It was so fun!

3)We made it home safely! That is the best news of all!

Rachel's Special Day

2011-09-20T11:40:00.000-07:00

Rachel had to share her special day since we were in Utah with her Great Gpa who had his birthday party that night. But she didn't seem to care. We celebrated it early. We updated our measuring wall and she got an alligator too. She has a funny interview video, and I really will have to try to get that on here. We owe R some celebrating, but we sure love her in our family!

Adam's Special Day

2011-09-20T11:16:00.000-07:00

The kids definitely had more fun running around outside. We did too. Even though it was August, it was a really nice day.

We went to get ice cream, and then opened Adam's present. They use these alligator puppets at story time and the kids love them. So I found ones that are exactly the same.

We did a video interview with him, but it didn't upload. So enjoy this one instead and hopefully I can get the other one to work later.

Summer Catch Up

2011-09-15T14:26:00.000-07:00

August: Take Me Out to the Ballgame

The blood donation center had been calling me a lot. I mostly ignored it, but then they offered free baseball tickets for donators in August. I'd hate to think that I gave blood just to get free tickets, but my schedule did mysteriously open up faster that week.
Even though it is a minor league team, it is the best Vegas has to offer. And it's good enough for us. But I still make the kids route for the Cardinals. That will never change.

Summer Catch Up

2011-09-15T14:15:00.000-07:00

August: The Caves

The caves is Ryan's high school hangout spot. We decided the kids were old enough to go so we went for Family Night. Despite the fact that we got a flat tire, and Adam couldn't stand getting dirty-it was a fun night.

No, I didn't change it all by myself, but it sure looks like I did huh?

This is the way we camp--fire and roasting marshmallows, then going home to bed :)

Summer Catch Up

2011-09-15T14:01:00.000-07:00

July: Pioneer Days

We don't live in the North Stake anymore, but we still were excited to go to their Pioneer Days. (It's normally a Utah holiday, but us Mormons like to celebrate it down here too) It was not super super hot, and so we were actually able to enjoy it! The kids had fun--esp. at the bounce house and watching fireworks! Adam calls them fire in the sky.

Lemonade out of a can--they thought it was Christmas

We finally got to wear our matching shirts-we had so much more fun because of it :)

Summer Catch Up

2011-09-15T13:34:00.000-07:00

July: Kinderland

Ryan has been searching for a ball pit to play in forever. They don't make them anymore. Not at McDonald's or Chuck E Cheese or Disneyland, etc etc. But my friend told me about a place in Vegas for kids under 5 called Kinderland. And yes, they have a ball pit. So for Ryan's sake we spent an afternoon there. I think the kids were more excited about the small roller coaster, but Ryan was persistent about his kids knowing the joy that is a ball pit.

Success!

Summer Catch Up

2011-09-15T13:12:00.000-07:00

July: Wes' Funeral

I hesitate to post anything about this event because it's impossible to put our feelings about it into any form of writing. It's emotional and personal and words can't do my heart's feelings justice. But how can I not post these pictures?

I think it's easy to see why I love this dear family so.

Summer Catch Up

2011-09-15T12:58:00.000-07:00

June: State Line

I left the kids with Ryan one night. I don't even remember what I did, but I was out past ten. I expected to be tired the next day, but to my surprise-the kids slept in. When they did wake up they had a story to tell. I heard Daddy and water and frog and cried. I found out that Ryan had taken them on a "road trip". The CA state line is about an hour away and the casino there were offering rides for free to locals in the month of June. So of course they had to go!
They went on a log ride, which they liked. And a frog ride, which Rachel didn't like. And rode the monorail which they called the train.

Adam loves salad. He'll eat that more than just about any food. Go figure.

It sounded like so much fun that I wanted to go! So we went again with Gpa and our friend Lee. We only had time for the log ride, but it was the best one.

Summer Catch Up

2011-08-28T16:53:00.000-07:00

June: Fish

Our aquarium had been empty ever since we got rid of our turtle and Ryan decided the kids were ready for some fish. It has been so fun. They love feeding the fish and we have even had some baby fish appear. We have had some "casualties" but Ryan carefully checks the tank to make sure he is the one to discover them. As long as nothing happens to "the pink one" we will be okay.

Summer Catch Up

2011-08-28T16:36:00.000-07:00

June: Fathers and Sons

Ryan took Adam to his first Fathers and Son's Camping Trip. I think he was a fan. I was glad to have a shopping trip with Rachel and an early bedtime! The boys, on the other hand, didn't get very much sleep.
And I heard rumors about them dodging bullets. I don't want to know what else happened :)

Summer Catch Up

2011-08-28T15:40:00.000-07:00

May:
My parents came to visit. It was a rare occasion that we didn't have to celebrate a wedding, birthday, Christmas, etc. We were able to just live our life and have some help and fun along the way. Looking forward to more visits like that. Jeff and Jill were also here that week and it was fun to spend time with lots of family. So if my kids act spoiled--now you know why!

First stop: Burger King

We tried and tried to get a video of them "boosting" each other up. It was sweet and hilarious

What's better than your gpa teaching you how to dunk a tennis ball?


This was their first attempt to swim this summer. It was the first time Rachel didn't turn blue from being so cold. They also took swimming lessons at the Y this summer. And I'm sad to realize that I don't have any pictures from that. But they LOVED it! They were timid at first, but now are complete fish and prefer to swim under water! What do you do in Vegas on a hot day? Go the the mall for ice cream... :)

When it gets really hot-go up to the mountains for hot chocolate and s'mores--in the snow!

Yes, Adam is wearing his sister's pink hat.

Not pictured is the mother's day present my mom and I gave ourselves: a night in a hotel and the Beatles Love show. Ryan would never have gone with me to see it, but Mom and I had a great time!

Much more to come...

In the meantime...

2011-08-07T16:42:00.001-07:00

I have a ton of summer adventures to post about, but until I can sort through all the pictures and get blogger to cooperate...
Here are some pics of my favorite three year old boys. They are going to be best friends for life whether they want to or not. They are off to a pretty good start though. Not only does Adam pray for Spencer every night, but today at church I asked if he wanted to to sit with Sister Spencer. I should've been more specific because Adam got all excited and asked, "Where is he?"

The Fourth

2011-08-06T22:45:00.000-07:00

We didn't have a normal Fourth of July weekend. Ryan was in Utah, and so I was alone with the kids. So much for wearing the matching T Shirts I bought. But we managed to squeeze in a few festivities.

July 2nd I went to watch fireworks with some friends at Seastrand Park after a BBQ. I wasn't going to stay that late because the kids were CRANKY, and I was by myself, but they seemed enthused about fireworks, so I relented. And Ben became my hero. Rachel started the night screaming at the approach of anyone but me, but ended up snuggling with Ben and didn't want anything to do with me. If you know her-you know how amazing that is. So thanks, Ben!

This is the only picture I have of the fourth. We enjoyed our family picnic at Mt. Charleston and then I enjoyed an afternoon to myself while Gpa babysat (thanks!). Ryan came back that night in time to go to a BBQ. This was our second fourth in this house and we still don't know if our neighbors like fireworks or not...but we learned that Adam and Rachel sure do!

Adam & Rachel

2011-07-27T01:59:00.000-07:00

Adam: (pointing to pictures on their shelves): "That's us when we were babies!"
Rachel: "And that's a picture of Jesus."
Dad: "That's right."
Rachel: "I love Jesus."
Adam: "I like Snow White."

Family Pictures

2011-07-24T21:47:00.000-07:00

At Least They Take Turns

2011-07-18T20:49:00.000-07:00

It could be a LOT harder to raise these adorable twins, but luckily--they tend tend take turns at whining, misbehaving, being cute, throwing tantrums, etc. Today was no exception. We attempted our first official no diapers potty training day.
It started with one willing participant (R), and one hysterical accident-prone kid (A).
The day ended with one willing participant (A), and one over tired, pant-soaked kid (R).
Believe it or not, the worst part of the day was sopping up the Gatorade that I spilled after I thought it would be a good motivation drink. It wasn't.
Overall, I call the day successful. Although I'm sure it will be a long time before I'm willing to leave the house without diapers, underwear, wipes, and a change of clothes.

In other news:

Rachel: "I want to take your picture."
Me: (misunderstanding) "you want me to take your picture?"
Rachel: "No, I take a picture. You take a smile."

and while playing with a toy snowman before lunch:
"Mommy, you hold my snowman."
"okay, I'll put him on the table."
"no, it's too hot in here. he needs to go in another room so he doesn't melt"

Adam's favorite new things to say:
"What? What you said"
"What happened to her?" (every time R cries)
"Sorry, Mommy. I didn't mean to do that."
"Sorry about that"

Yeah, seems innocent enough, but...let's just say it's a good thing he's cute.

Speaking of cute--I will post pictures soon enough.

People or Policy?

2011-07-17T22:03:00.000-07:00

National media outlets have had a field day recently, running a story about Delta Airlines charging a group of US Soldiers returning from Afghanistan hundreds of dollars in excess baggage fees. Now in the midst of a PR nightmare, airlines all across the nation are scrambling to amend their policies to extend additional “free checked bags” to military personnel.

This is neither the first, nor the most egregious common sense violation I’ve seen purported by an airline. While I was working at the Las Vegas airport, a knife-wielding man ran through security and took a young boy hostage. After several terrifying minutes, he moved the knife from the boy’s throat for a split-second, allowing officers to open fire. Later that night, after hours of police questions, and medical exams, my supervisor found the boy and his family huddled together on an airport bench. “What are you guys still doing here?” he queried. “Well, obviously we missed our flight” replied the Dad, “but (major US airline) told us that since we didn’t miss the flight due to weather or traffic, they’re not allowed to put us on the next flight.”

Now, I’m not mad that Delta’s policy called for charging excess-baggage fees. I’m upset at the employees who ignored common sense, and enforced that procedure. We had the same policy at our airline. But when we saw a soldier in uniform, we had the decency to ignore it. This isn’t a policy problem. It’s a people problem. Because there can’t be a written policy for every possible scenario (like a family being taken hostage), human beings need to step up and use common sense. Common decency.

I’m so sick of hearing “He’s just doing his job.” Or “That’s our policy.” These are unacceptable excuses for being an idiot- for standing behind a procedure that you yourself feel is ridiculous. I encourage everyone out there to do the right thing. The reasonable thing. The HUMAN thing. Whatever that may be. Just because there’s a policy in place, is no excuse to check your soul at the door.

I once had a boss, who after answering a litany of “what if” questions from new trainees, finally said simply “Just do the right thing, and we’ll stand behind you.”

The moral weakness of those who practice blind obedience to policy has led to some of civilization’s greatest injustices. Have you ever wondered how you would’ve acted had you lived in Nazi Germany? Or the United States during slavery? I submit that individuals who hide their own integrity and humanity behind a shield of “policy” in modern times, would’ve done the same thing in any other era. And like the proverbial boiled frog, they would’ve continued to do so step by step, until there was nothing left behind the shield. Like the sapling hidden under the shade of the mighty oak, humanity needs sunlight to survive. If you allow your humanity to be hidden under the shade of procedure for too long, eventually it will die. Fascism, Nazism, Genocide, Slavery, Segregation, have all been at one point or another, policy. Procedure. The Law. As Martin Luther King Jr. wrote, “One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws.”

The Bible teaches that Jesus was constantly attacked by those who would put procedure ahead of people. And at every turn, Jesus’ priority was the individual. The Spirit of the Law, taking precedence over the letter.

So, are you a people person? Or a policy person?

Even Though...

2011-07-13T10:15:00.000-07:00

Even though...
...we are back from Utah, we still don't want to go back to our everyday lives.
...we had a wonderful time seeing lots of old friends, we are so saddened by the circumstances.
...we are sad, we are so grateful for the powerful testimonies borne at Wes' funeral.
...it was sad to leave our kiddos, we are so grateful to our friends for watching them
...we have relived so many memories, we are anxious to read more
...we know there are so many willing to help, we are hoping to find more
...we will be back soon, we still want to be up there more
...we believe in the promise of eternal families, we mourn the temporary separation of the greatest family we have ever known.
...we are grieving, we are counting our many, many blessings.

"If in the presence of certain people you are lifted to nobler heights, you are in good company." Ezra Taft Benson

Wes

2011-07-04T16:42:00.000-07:00

Spencer Wesley Truman

February 15, 1981-July 4, 2011

We love you more than you could ever know

Cars 2

2011-07-02T23:34:00.000-07:00

Their first real movie in theatres was Tangled, but they don't remember that, so it was really fun to take them to see Cars. Yes, the theatre was full, we just are losers who like to go early and get good seats.

Adam has been picky about his clothes lately, so when I pulled out his new Lightning McQueen shirt to wear, he pitched a fit. But when I told him we were going to go visit Lightning at the movies he put it right on. Ryan fell asleep halfway through...but I wouldn't use him as your critic.

They are Three!

2011-06-22T19:53:00.000-07:00

We made it through the terrible twos! Which really weren't all that terrible (ok, we had our moments)...
The kids understood a little bit more about birthdays this year. They kept saying it was in 2 weeks (they still do), and Adam wanted pink, and Rachel green. Pink and green what I didn't know, but we figured some stuff out.
I wasn't going to have a big party, or spend a lot of time on a cake, or get them a lot of presents, but...some things just had a mind of their own.

I was proud of myself for having all the presents wrapped and organized a week ahead of time. However...I forgot to mention the (ahem) obvious fact to my husband to not let the children play in the same room with the presents alone. So they (Rachel) opened them all. Adam blamed it all on her, but I don't think he is completely innocent. Sigh. At least we found out if they liked them. And at least we still had a few hidden away. And at least Ryan took pictures.

On their birthday, we took them to Chuck E Cheese. It was so nice to sit and enjoy a meal while the kids took turns giving each other boosts onto the horse ride, and putting the money in for each other. I'm starting to see the perks of having three year olds. Also, Adam got himself completely dressed for the first time. I didn't have the heart to tell him it was backwards.

Notice his hand on her knee. Too cute!

We were grateful to have friends and family come over to have cake with us. This was the first birthday cake I have made for them without any help from my mother. So...we'll take it as a victory, but definitely do not look too closely at the pictures.

Yes, Adam's bike is the pink one.

My friend talked me into making this sign. Next craft project will be in 2015.

Adam fell asleep clutching his new cars, and Rachel begged for her jammies and fell asleep instantly. I considered that a successful day.

29 and Counting

2011-06-13T09:03:00.000-07:00

Despite my dislike of things that are cliche, I have made my bucket list of 30 things to do before I turn 30. I have been working on the list for awhile, and it was surprisingly hard to come up with 30 (realistic) things I wanted to do. So, more for my sake than anyone else's, is the list...

30 by 30

1.Have a baby if possible (that is a big if)
2. Read Thomas Monson’s biography
3. Write one chapter of a book (to be completed at some point in my life)
4. Go on a cruise
5. Read Great Expectations
6. Go to Disneyland with Michelle (I'm so glad we made that happen, friends!)
7. Visit at least 2 friends I haven't in a long time
8. Have lessons at FHE consistently
9. Lose at least 5 lbs.
10. Take at least one picture a week *
11. Drive to UT by myself (others can be there, I just have to do the driving)
12. Watch 10 classic movies I haven't seen (any suggestions?)
Casablanca, To Kill A Mockingbird, Singing in the Rain,
13. Participate in an official race (probably a 5K)
14. Bring gifts to the NICU
15. Do Karaoke
16. Eat Escargot
17. Swim with Dolphins
18. Beat Ryan in Monopoly
19. Make a new friend
20. Finish my painting project
21. Finish my kid’s first year scrapbook
22. Try a new food
23. Learn to cook something new
24. Practice the piano and learn one song by memory (Twinkle Twinkle counts)
25. Update all blogs once a month
26. Start a garden (Pray for my bell pepper plant)
27. Call a family member once a week (my mom doesn't count)
28. Go horseback riding
29. Complete my mormon.org profile
30. Give away a Book of Mormon
*Aaron noticed I didn't have a number 10 originally. I told him he could pick one for me. But then I remembered what #10 was supposed to be. So I am going to have
31. Participate in an Eagle Scout project

Two More

2011-06-05T17:37:00.001-07:00

Me: "Who is my mom?"
R: "Your name is Amy. You're so sweet."

"I don't like your hair. I love your hair."

Rach E's Words

2011-06-05T17:16:00.003-07:00

After observing Adam having a fit resulting in time out.
"It's not his fault. It's not Daddy's fault. It's not my fault. It's your fault.Dang it."

All in the last 5 minutes:

"I'm a howler monkey."

"You get me a piece of gum please. Just a little one?" (after she stole half my pack)

"They're broken and I'm sorry." (after smashing Adam's puzzle)

"Excuse me." Pause. "Scoot over!"

The Fire House

2011-06-03T13:23:00.001-07:00

Thanks to ryan's Cubscout calling, we were able to tour the fire station by our house. It was a lot of fun.

True Colors

2011-06-03T12:04:00.001-07:00

Only a true boy would tuck his trucks in with a pink blanket

You Can't Have Him

2011-05-26T12:42:00.001-07:00

I had two extra kids at my house yesterday. Needless to say I was a little frazzled. But I managed to get dinner on the table for all of us. I was taking bites with one hand while the other one was holding a bottle for the baby. I had just gotten one more cup of milk for kid #4 when I heard Adam say,
"this is yummy chicken, mommy, thanks for making it."
I was so amazed and thrilled I didn't have the heart to tell him that we were actually eating meatballs.

Canon Upgrade

2011-05-08T20:37:00.000-07:00

Ryan has complained about our lack of a good camera for awhile now. I told him he could get one as long as he learned how to use it, and deleted the bad pictures so I didn't have to sort through the hundreds he likes to take (I can't stand deleting pics of my kids even if they're blurry). Here are a few of his practice shots:

real moon or not? maybe I'll tell you

Am I all caught up on our blogging life yet? Not quite-but I think I'm done for now. Whew :)

Not Often

2011-05-08T20:24:00.000-07:00

I don't talk about church stuff very often on this blog. But I should. Because our LDS faith really is the foundation of everything we do and are as a family. But there are special moments that surpass the normalcy that is our church. Yesterday we had one of those moments. We were able to participate in the sealing of some friends of ours. Sealings in the temple are marriages beyond earthly bounds. And it was extra special because of their sweet son who got to be a part of this special day. Congrats you guys!

It was nice to know that our kids were having a special day of their own: they got to go to Lake Mead with Gpa to feed the fish. Rachel kept saying this guy was a fireman. ??? Guess you have to be 2 to make that connection.

At the Beginning...

2011-05-08T20:10:00.000-07:00

We want to potty train. We have been too busy to give it a significant try, but we have dabbled into it a little bit. I thought I would post the pictures of their first successes. I don't think I have ever seen smiles that big. They were sooo proud of themselves!

Dress Ups and Mother's Day

2011-05-08T20:00:00.000-07:00

This is our new favorite past time:

I can't tell you how funny it is to see Adam come out of the room and exclaim, "I'm a princess!" And then proceed to twirl and curtsy. And then when his crown falls off he frets, "My crown!" and has to replace it as quickly as possible.
I have been thinking about this a lot. About when it doesn't become okay to exclaim proudly, "I'm a princess!" or, "I'm a Mother." Because that's what I am. And some days it feels like I am "dressing up". That it's not real and that I can "play" my way through the day and think it's good enough. But really, I can't let my crown slip and fall off. I need to wear it proudly. I learned that lesson this week when I thought it would be okay to indulge a little bit. I spent too much time on myself. The result? A colored on wall that I had to paint afterward. (Note: some indulgence is fine--I just knew I was taking it too far).
Today I have really enjoyed my chance to step back from my role and let Ryan take the reigns. He has done a good job. And I have been able to channel some of my creative energy that has been building up for too long. But tomorrow-I am anxious to push up my sleeves and get to work. To do what I know I was made to do and to do it well. And if I do that long enough, maybe I won't feel like I'm "dressing up" anymore. And that my kids will be able to grow up and say, "she knew she was a mother"

Happy Mother's Day!

Easter

2011-05-08T19:28:00.000-07:00

I really enjoyed Easter this year. The kids really got into it. When you ask them what Easter is about they will respond, "Eggs! Bunnies! Candy!" But I promise we taught them about Jesus. Or at least their nursery leaders did (good thing Ryan is in nursery so he can fulfill our parental duties of teaching the gospel).

Early in April, we dyed eggs (for an Easter party that got snowed out-go figure). I was pleasantly surprised that we had hardly any fighting, and not even a big mess. I'm a little afraid to ever do it again because it went so well.

Then after BYU grad, we stayed in Utah a little longer to go to Royce and Heather's Easter party extravaganza. It was great that we had the only kids there cause they were spoiled. As in they ate enough candy to last for a year. They stayed awake till midnight on our drive home. We played Pin the Tail on the Bunny and you should have seen my kids' sense of order coming through. They could not stand not having the tail not be on the exact right spot. But they got the hang of it quickly enough and laughed every time someone got it wrong. There was more egg dying, "Don't Eat Pete!" and a fantastic egg hunt followed by a not so fantastic egg toss. I'm sure next year I will be picked last. Thanks for the fun time, friends!

We quickly drove home from Utah and arrived in Vegas at 2am. Kids woke up Easter morning at 8:45am. Too early for me, but in just enough time for our neighborhood egg hunt. These people go all out! Big breakfast for all the kids, hundreds of eggs filled with candy, toys, and money, and even baby chicks to win and take home! (we went to church before we accidentally ended up with a chick). The only drawback to the whole event was the neighbors who had blocked off their yard with a big sign that said "No eggs! We don't like kids". I am not kidding. But overall it was a great way to celebrate Easter with our neighbors. The only thing we will change about next year is that we are officially banning Easter grass. I think you all know why. Oh and one more thing--I will actually take pictures on Easter Sunday and take get pictures of Rachel in her Easter dress and hat. When she put on her hat, Adam said, "she's a cowboy!" cause that's one of the hats they dress up in at Gma's house :)

True Blue?

2011-05-08T18:35:00.000-07:00

We were excited to be able to go to Jill and Jeff's BYU graduation. We are so happy for them! However, between the weather and the looonng ceremonies, it wasn't exactly the best conditions for our little guys. But--we still think we gave them a good showing of what BYU is all about with the hopes that they will go there. (Ryan's motivation for that dream is strictly financial. I, on the other hand, actually got something out of my BYU experience).

So what do you do when you have 2.5 hours of name reading in the Marriot Center? Take pictures! Lots and lots of pictures:

Special thanks to:
Wes and Lori, etc who watched our kids for us, Gma who fed us, Gpa who entertained us, Jill who forgave us for losing her present, Jeff for feeding our children fruit instead of cookies.

Cruisin Was Heaven 2011

2011-05-08T18:10:00.000-07:00

We talked about it on and off for about a year or so. "We should go on a cruise for our 30th birthdays." "okay, I'll see if I can get a cheap deal. We should invite some friends."
I didn't think it would really happen, but our friends Nate and Stacy, had the same idea. So before we knew it, we were on the phone negotiating prices, days off work, and most importantly, grandparent babysitting duty. And at the end of these phone calls, we were booked on a Carnival 7 day cruise leaving out of Long Beach.
In the weeks leading up to it, I would daydream about all the sleep I was going to be able to get. That's all that I really cared about. But once we were there-I found out how heavenly it really was.

The best parts for me were:

the aforementioned sleep (and the excellent housekeeping)

normal dinner conversation

ATV riding (despite how SLOWLY Ryan drove)

the fact that Ryan did not work, at all (this is huge for him)
making it through the day with clean clothes
long showers
no diapers!
melting cake every night (I still drool over it)
the lazy river (my new happy place)

I crossed off several of my Life To Do list also:

the cruise itself

swimming, and riding on, and kissing dolphins (I'm grateful to everyone who indulged me in that-it was even better than I anticipated)

eating escargot (I failed at that when I was actually in France, so I was grateful for the chance to make up for it)

beating Ryan in Monopoly (with no cheating, and not just winning-crushing him)
karaoke (Ryan did it with me and our version of My Girl was REALLY lame, but oh well)

Unfortunately, I don't think I can cross crusin' off my list for good. I'm afraid my first experience just made me eager for another one. I just hope we can talk gma and gpa into it again. We really appreciate them watching our kiddos. We didn't worry about them at all cause we knew they were in such good hands. And we only slightly panicked when we got a text that simply said, "What pharmacy do you use?" Then, a couple of hours later the story came out. Gma took Rachel into the doctor for what she assumed was an ear infection. But turns out there was a foreign object in her ear! So Rachel got bound and held down and the doctor pulled out...an earring! She put it in while I was busy packing and kept it in there for 6 days! So--she won't be getting her ears pierced for a looooong time!

It took a full week to miss the kids. But then I was anxious to get back to them. But after about three days, the novelty had worn off, and I started dreaming about Al and Ariel-those great men who brought me my 3 course dinner every night. Bless them.

It was great to see our friend Adrianna and finally meet her fiance. Thanks for driving us!

NICU Reunion

2011-05-08T09:26:00.001-07:00

We had another reunion. This one was a lot more fun for the kids. They got to utilize the bounce house for the first time and enjoy popcorn. Adam was brave enough for face painting, but Rachel was "scared of the lady". Mom's translation is that she was mad because I made her get rid of the big rock she found.
I thought maybe I could just have fun this time and not get emotional. Nope. It's impssible. And when you show your son where he slept for nearly 3 mos. and he whispers, "shh...the babies are sleeping." Yeah, I pretty much lost it.

2011-04-29T10:54:00.000-07:00

Ryan has been anxious to share his love of hockey with Adam ever since he was born and was declared to have a "sweet hockey body". Translation: those short legs of yours you inherited from your father will not get you to the NBA. It was the last game of the season for the Las Vegas Wranglers, so three generations of Fitz men went to enjoy the game. Oh yeah--there were some girls there too, but they were mostly interested in fashion. When asked which team Rachel wanted to win, she responded, "I choose red". There wasn't a red team on the ice. But we'll face that issue another day.

Of course, candy and fighting: what hockey is all about:

April 9

2011-04-09T11:01:00.001-07:00

Hail

Conference Weekend

2011-04-03T16:14:00.000-07:00

Just finished watching General Conference. I can't say we did a good job of prepping the kids for the weekend, or for planning activities for them to do during it. But we gleaned more out of it than I thought we would. Here is what Adam gleaned:

During the opening prayer, Adam looked at the man praying with his hands outstretched across the pulpit and said, "He not fold his arms!"
and during one talk about Adam and Eve, he looked up and exclaimed, "I'm Adam!"

Rachel was not left out. When I firmly told her to stop screeching so I could watched conference she asserted, "It's not conference...it's the prophet!"

I gleaned that I need to be better at incorporating the gospel into my life and teaching my family. Hence, I finally subscribed to the Friend and I am starting my profile on mormon.org

Other Conversations:
You can tell how often I get ready for the day because when I came out of the room wearing my clothes, Rachel said "where are your shoes?" and Adam asked, "Where are we going?"

Adam has been getting us all mixed up. He has called me Rachey and Rachey and Gma he calls "mommy". I wish I could explain the look of confusion on his face when he realizes his mistake and tries to correct himself.

We call him "Wubby" quite a bit and the other night he prayed for "Rachel, and Mommy, and Wubby and Adam and Daddy"

We were playing on the floor the other day and Rachel lifted up my shirt and pointed to my stretch marks and asked, "You have a scratch, Mama?" I said yes, and then decided to show her my C Section scar. I don't think she was ready for that.

How did my babies become people?!