Merry Christmas!

 

Love, The Darringtons

A Month of Thanks

I'm grateful that I decide to post every day this month about something I am thankful for.  I know some people think it is cliche, but for me it was good way to really reflect on my day and to look for something that I was especially grateful for that day. Some days it was hard, not that I'm not grateful every day for many things in my life, but I really wanted to think of things that had really impacted my life that day.  This experience has really opened my eyes and helped me to realize that EVERYDAY Heavenly Father gives me what I need in order to be happy, successful, and to serve Him. I am truly blessed and hope that I can learn from this experience and stop to think often about what I am grateful for in my day, especially when it is hard.

Cuddle Time

I'm grateful for those times when my kiddos want to cuddle with me! I love their hugs and their kisses and there's nothing better than snuggling on the couch with my babies to read a book, watch a movie, talk, or sleep.

Bedtime

I am grateful for bedtime.  It's so nice at the end of a full day to be able to put on some comfy PJs, cuddle up in a warm blanket, read a good book, and go to bed.  I also love it when my children have a fun, busy day and go to bed like they are supposed to so mommy doesn't go insane! :)

Books

I am grateful for books to read. All kinds of books--children's books, popular novels, classics, biographies, fiction, nonfiction, coloring books :) What a wonderful form of entertainment!

Honesty

I am grateful that my parents taught me honesty at a very young age... These last couple of weeks have had some very interesting events. A couple of weeks ago I received my bill from the city (water and city) to find out that it had gone up considerably! I was SHOCKED! We're on level pay, so our bill had readjusted for the new year and this seemed like quite the increase considering that when I looked at the little graph of water usage they had on the bottom, which had 2 years of water use, it appeared we had used less water this year than last, but I figured maybe I had under paid the year before or maybe they took me off auto pay on accident or something and I would just keep an eye on my bills.  With Thanksgiving coming I stuck the bill in my "to-do" pile and pushed it to the back of my mind. We left for the holiday and came back to find another letter in the mailbox from the city... I knew it was time to pay my bill, but was not yet late so it piqued my curiosity.  I opened the envelope to find a check for almost $400 and a letter explaining that this was a rebate check because I had built up a large overage on my account and while most are small and they just adjust the level pay for the next year to compensate, mine was very large so they wanted to refund the extra money I had paid in. Now I was REALLY confused! How could I have overpaid $400 and have my level pay go up for the next year? So I waited until today and called. At first I talked to one of the secretaries. She was very polite and pulled up my account and told me that the check was a rebate because I had overpaid and the increase on my bill was for my current months usage. She said that I had been taken off level pay, so I must have checked the box to have it changed on my last bill (in Twin Falls they only let you change from or to level pay in Sept). When I told her I had not elected to change from level pay she questioned whether the box had "accidentally" been checked. I knew this couldn't be right since I pay my bill using bill pay and the statement with the option to change is still sitting at my house. As she then started looking at my account she noticed something didn't look quite right and asked me if she could check into it and get back to me.  I told her this was fine, but asked that she try to call me back by the end of the day since my bill was now due and I did not want to be late on it.  So I waited... At the very end of the business day I received a call from the Twin Falls city Utility Billing Supervisor/Finance Accountant.  He was VERY embarrassed and apologetic as tried to explain that the program they used to do the billing had somehow malfunctioned with our account and that we were indeed not due a $400 rebate, would not be removed from level pay, and that our level pay amount would be adjusted to actually be slightly under what we had payed the year before (because our usage had indeed been lower this past year than the year before). He continued to tell me how embarrassed he was and very politely asked me if I had yet cashed the check they'd sent and since I hadn't if I would please mind returning it to them (giving me several options including him personally coming to our home to pick it up if it were most convenient for me). I, of course, told him it would be no problem to return the check and since I would be heading out tomorrow I would drop it by the city office building.

The moral of the story...

I am grateful that my parents taught me to try and be honest in my dealings. From a very young age my mom was always conscientious about small things like her grocery receipts.  Both making sure she had been appropriately charged for the items she purchased (who wants to pay more than they should, right?) and making sure she paid for everything she walked out of the store with, returning if necessary to pay for items.  I have tried to do the same and have had many incidents where I have walked back into the store after looking at the receipt in my car to pay for an item I notice they'd missed or even returning days later to the store after realizing I had gotten home with an item that I had not purchased. I have often thought to myself as I dealt with these situations "my integrity is worth far more than the $2 (or $5, $0.50, $0.10, whatever the amount may be) that I owe the store." Now I'm not saying an extra $400 would not have been extremely useful, but when I noticed the discrepancy I knew that I needed to know if there was an error no matter the outcome.  And when I found out that the $400 was not mine it was EASY for me to say

"My integrity is worth FAR more than $400!"

The Holy Ghost

I am so grateful for the Holy Ghost. I am grateful for the peace it brings me, the guidance it gives me, and the answers I receive through listening to its still small voice.  I am so glad that I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and that I have been baptized and have the Holy Ghost as my constant companion. I am grateful that I can have this guidance always, as long as I chose to be faithful.

Grandpa O

I am grateful for Grandpa Oliver. I love my dad and was so glad to be able to spend some time with him and for my kids to spend some time with him this weekend too. The kids LOVED movie time with grandpa and David enjoyed blowing and raking leaves with grandpa.  He runs, plays, and works outside with him every time we go to visit and he loves it so much.

Sisters

Just realizing that I need a good current picture of me and my sisters... :( But I am grateful for my sisters!  LOVE them!  I am glad that I was able to go visit my older sis for Thanksgiving and that we were able to spend some quality time shopping and playing together... I am also grateful for for my baby sis and missed her this Thanksgiving and am hoping I get to see her soon. Next time we're all together, remind me we need a picture! :) Also grateful for great sis-in-laws.  Always nice to have great girls around to have awesome chats with!

Holidays

I am grateful for holidays! I love holiday traditions, spending time with family, and good food!  I am grateful for Thanksgiving and that it provides us an opportunity to really think about the blessings we have in our lives and reminds me to thank my Heavenly Father for even the small blessings he gives to me.

Car

I am grateful for my car. I am grateful that we have vehicles to get us to work, the grocery store, church, etc.  I am grateful that our cars can drive us to visit family. I am grateful that our car gets decent gas mileage so it doesn't cost us a small fortune to visit family.

Dishwasher

I am so grateful for a dishwasher! I know it may seem trivial, but modern conveniences are wonderful. Without a dishwasher I am not sure I would ever get my dishes done... of course, I guess I did get my dishes done before we had a dishwasher, but I sure do love it!

Text Messages

Today I am grateful for text messages! How did we live before cell phones? (And in our house we didn't even enter this era until just over a year ago!) Today my newest nephew was born and I am so grateful that shortly after he came into the world I was able to see this adorable face. Welcome to the world baby Keegan and congratulations Terry, Sarah, and big brother Bryker! Can't wait to cuddle this cute boy!

Temples

I am so grateful for Temples of the Lord.  I have been so blessed to always live near a temple. I love the words to the primary song "I Love To See The Temple."

I love to see the temple,

I'm going there some day.

To feel the Holy Spirit,

To listen and to pray.

For the temple is a house of God,

A place of love and beauty.

I'll prepare myself while I am young,

This is my sacred duty.

I love to see the temple,

I'll go inside some day.

To covenant with my Father,

I'll promise to obey.

For the temple is a holy place,

Where we are sealed together.

As a Child of God I've learned this truth,

A family is forever.

 Just being able to see the temple brings me so much joy and peace and to be able to attend the temple and do the work of the Lord and feel the peace that abides there makes me so happy. I am grateful that I can teach my children about temples and how eternal families begin in the temple and that I can see their love for the temple already. Today we had the wonderful opportunity to attend the Boise Temple re-dedication and I'm so happy that we were able to go.  The spirit was so strong and the messages that were shared were uplifting and encouraging. I'm grateful to know of the plan of salvation and to know that if I live righteously my family can be eternal.  I pray that my children will see the blessings that the temple brings into my life and our family and that they will desire to attend the temple one day to learn more about their Heavenly Father and His plan for them.

My Mom

Today (and EVERY day) I am grateful for my mom, or Gramma Obiler as David calls her. My mom is such an amazing example to me. She raised me to be the person I am today (at least the good part of me...), she taught me amazing skills (cooking, sewing, crocheting...), she is an awesome support, and a wonderful grandma. I am so grateful that she is always just a call away and hope that I can be as good of a mom as she is to me.

Ward Family

I am so grateful for a wonderful ward family.  It was such an enjoyable night tonight going to our ward Thanksgiving dinner, visiting with friends and neighbors, and eating WAY too much yummy food!  I am grateful to know that even though I am far away from my family I have people that care about me and that I care about, that we can share our joy and our burdens, and that we can worship together.  I love that the church is the same, no matter where you are and that no matter where I live or what city I move to I have a built in "family."

Trunk-or-Treat!

 

 This year Halloween was fun and busy!  The primary was in charge of the ward trunk-or-treat which made life a little crazy for me.  We decided to do some minute-to-win-it games which turned out to be loads of fun, but lots of work! We also did donuts and cidar, a costume parade, and of course the trunk-or-treat.  We had a good number of trunks this year, probably the most I've ever seen for our ward and it was pretty fun for the kids.  I was also busy this Halloween because I made David's costume.  He is OBSESSED with Thomas the Train and I found a cool idea online to make a Thomas costume out of boxes. I'm not exactly sure how long it took me to make because I just did parts here and there when the kids were asleep or napping mostly, but it was absolutely worth it when he saw it and put it on!  He was SO happy!  Becca was a duck (the same costume David wore for his first Halloween) and she was adorable!  I didn't get any pictures of Brett and I, but we dressed up as Sir Topham Hatt and Lady Hatt (from Thomas and Friends).  On Halloween we entered a costume contest at the local Kings (which we didn't place in, but that's okay) went to trick or treating on Bisch's Street (a local motor home business in town brings a bunch of motor homes to the KMart parking lot where the park in a big circle, other businesses from town occupy each trailer and you bring canned food to donate to trick or treat around the trailers), and did a little trick or treating around the neighborhood.  The kids had a lot of fun.  David kept asking to go to just one more door and would say "trunk or treat" instead of trick or treat because we had been trunk or treating the night before. He also calls pumpkins and particularly jack-o-laterns "punkiweens."

David in his Thomas the Train Costume

David wearing his Thomas conductor hat

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Becca loved her costume, it was so soft and cuddly

My cute little ducky!

Friends

I am grateful for good friends.  I have been blessed in all times of my life to have wonderful friends who have been there for me, cheered me up, inspired me to be better, watched my babies, brought me meals or treats, gotten me through some of the most difficult challenges of my life, and set amazing examples for me.  Many of you probably don't realize the impact you have had on my life, but whether you were that friend at age 3, 10, 16 or now (or anywhere in between) and whether we are close today or have been seperated by space, time, and busy lives, I want to tell you thank you for being that friend.

All My Many Jobs...

I am so grateful for my many jobs... I am grateful that I was able to take a break from teaching to be home with my children most of all.  I am grateful that I am at home to hear David's weird comments (like lately he's started telling me while he's eating, "mom, finish me."  Took me awhile to figure out that he was asking me to feed him) and to see Becca's personality growing as she become SUCH A GIRL (can't wait for the teenage years!)  I am also grateful that I can babysit some children in my home to help with the finances, not to mention that I truly do adore the kids I watch (not to say it does come with its own set of challenges, just like parenting) and I'm glad they get to come over and teach me and play with my children.  It is awesome to have automatic friends for my kids. I'm also grateful that I get to mentor with the school district.  This has been a new adventure for me and has opened up my mind as a teacher which has been so much fun since I do plan to go back to teaching one day. I feel like right now I am in the perfect place for me and for our family.  It is awesome to just see that Heavenly Father answers prayers and that He blesses us when we follow His promptings.  It hasn't been easy and all of these changes have come with their fair amount of stress and challenges, but I feel blessed and happy to know that we are trying to do what is right and best for our family and that the Lord is pleased with our efforts.

Grandma D

Today I am grateful for my mother-in-law,  David and Becca's grandma D. After reading my blog she called me today to check on my sweet Becca and see how she was doing with teething.  She also was so kind to tell me how much she appreciated reading my daily "grateful" posts (as well as remind me that I was behind a couple days and help me get back on track!) This is only a VERY small amount of what this wonderful lady does for me and our family!  She is such a kind, caring person and a wonderful example to me!  Thank you Grandma D!  We love you!

Book of Mormon

 

I am grateful for the Book of Mormon.  I am grateful that I get to read it with my children everyday and teach them of Jesus Christ and His people.  I am grateful for another testament of Jesus Christ.  I know the Book of Mormon is a true record of an ancient people and of Jesus Christ.

TYLENOL!

Today I am grateful for Tylenol.  My poor baby girl is getting her molars.  The first one came in without me even noticing (although looking back she was being grouchier than usual), but unfortunately we aren't that lucky with the rest.  She has been MISERABLE! And both her and I got very little sleep last night, but I am still grateful for Tylenol so that she can get a little relief from that nasty tooth pain and I can get a little more sleep.

Family Fun

I am so grateful for a fun family and for family fun! :)  We were able to go to Salt Lake this last weekend to celebrate my niece's 5th birthday and it was so fun!  We went to Trafalga and played golf, road in race cars, rock climbed, and played laser tag!  It was so much fun and even better that I got to do it with some of the people that I love most!

Grandpa S

I am so grateful for my Grandpa S. He's 94 and his health has been declining.  This last couple of weeks have been especially difficult for him, so when we had Friday off we decided to pack up and head down to see him again since we don't know how much longer he'll be around.  I'm grateful that we were able to visit with him this weekend and that my children are able to know their great-grandpa.

Short Work Weeks

Brett had parent teacher conferences this week, thus no school tomorrow!  So thankful for short work weeks!

Naps

Today I am grateful for naps. :)  Both for me and the kiddos.  I LOVE it when I can sneak in a nap (even if it's just 20 min. like today) because it helps me to feel a little more refreshed, helps me be nicer, and just makes me happy!  I also love it when my kids take naps which unfortunately David didn't today... :(  I'm hoping we are not coming to the end of napping for him but he was reasonably decent this evening and was ASLEEP by 8! (Which happens like NEVER!!) So I'll still count it as a win!

Proud To Be An American

Today I am grateful for the opportunity I have to vote.  I am grateful that I get a say and that others (even those I do not agree with) also have a say in how our country, states, counties, and communities are run.  I am also grateful tonight that this election will be over and that soon our lives can continue on and I will no longer have to deal with political facebook posts! :)

Triple The Fun!

We had a triple 1st birthday party for Becca and her twin cousins, Hunter and Jaxson, back in the beginning of September since their birthdays are only 6 days apart. It was loads of fun with good food and family!

 

Decorations, Aunt Nicole made big cupcakes for each of the birthday kids, and I made little frog and ladybug cupcakes for everyone else.

 

 big cupcakes

 Frogs and Ladybugs

 

Birthday girl with grandma D

 Birthday girl

 The birthday boys opening presents

 Birthday girl opening presents

 Playing in the paper

 Ready for CAKE!

 Yummy!

All sugared up!

And here's the spoiled girl on her birthday!

These CrAzIeS

So a few months ago I learned a lesson from some friends. They have children pretty close to the same age as ours and I have enjoyed reading their blog and following how they deal with the daily ups and downs of parenthood (plus they're fabulous photographers so even the downs look excellent at their house!) I was particularly touched by a post a few months ago.  Their son (just a few months older than David) drew all over himself, bed sheets, and the walls in the middle of the night at her parent's house while they were all sleeping. In the morning when they discovered his "artwork" they took time to photograph the moment and wrote a cute post about it... not sure that's how I would have reacted, but what a memory and a wonderful way to let their child know that HE is special to them. So I decided to try and take this lesson to heart and be slower to overreact and quicker to enjoy the moments, even when they are not so enjoyable. Already this week I have had 2 of these such moments.

First, my sweet Becca learned a new trick. As I was cooking dinner yesterday I turned around to find this...

She learned to climb on to chairs.  She was SO proud of herself I decided to let her be and continue cooking.  I stirred the pot again and turned back around to check on her to find this...

 

Yep, on the table!  Well, at least I got some cute pictures, right?!? ;)

Then last night I put the kids to bed, typed my "thankful post," tinkered around, etc. Just before going to bed I went to check on the kids to find David, sweetly sleeping on the rocking chair in his underwear. I figured the silly boy got too hot and took off his pajamas.  Again, I contemplated my next step.  I debated whether or not I try to redress him and thought about moving him back to his bed, but decided instead to just take a picture of my sweet boy and not risk the chance of waking him. I just let him be and went to bed.

 

Not so crazy, right? Well, this morning I discovered the REAL reason for the naked boy sleeping on my rocking chair. As Brett was leaving to go to work I heard him yelling for me, so I came out to the living room to find David COMPLETELY naked (yep, no picture of that). After I had put him to bed (in his bed) the night before he had pooped in his diaper, came out of his room, took off his pajamas, took of his diaper, threw it in the garbage (thank you for that), put his underwear back on and fell asleep on the couch. He is not night potty trained yet, so he wet his underwear and the chair, so when he woke up he took off his underwear and was standing in the front room stark naked when daddy came out. To make it all better, I had no idea he dropped a few little "pebbles" from his diaper until I discovered Becca going to put one in her mouth. YUCK! Another memory made...

Well, my thanks for the day. Despite all the crazy, I am SO thankful for these two!  They make me happy, they make me laugh (and cry), and they teach me every day. My life literally revolves around them and at this point in time I would have it no other way.

Primary

Today I am grateful for my calling. I am in the Primary Presidency and am so blessed to work with an amazing Primary President and presidency, many wonderful teachers, cub scout leaders, music chorister, pianist, achievement day leaders, nursery leaders, and primary children! I am in awe at how many wonderful people it takes to make a primary work and how wonderful the people who make it work are.  The ladies I work with in the presidency have taught me many things and the children have made me more than ever come to realize what Christ meant when he said we must "be converted, and become as little children" (Matthew 18:3).  This month I am teaching Gospel Instruction (for those of you who haven't been in Primary for awhile this is the new name for Sharing Time) and today I prepared a game for the Junior Primary children. After church, as I was walking out to my car, one sweet little girl in our ward walked past me and said to me "That game today was fun!" It was a simple gesture, but it meant the world to me. What a sweet example of how a simple comment of thanks and appreciation can lift someone and show them the light of Christ. I am grateful that my son has wonderful nursery leaders and that my children will have the opportunity to be blessed by many great primary leaders that will help us to reinforce the things we are teaching in our home and help them to learn choose the right and love the Lord.

My Health

Today I was sick and spent much of the day in bed. Boo! Not my idea of fun. Luckily it was a Saturday and Brett was home to help with the house and the kids because mommy's don't get sick days, but it reminded me how grateful I am for my health. I am so blessed to have good health and aside from the common, occasional illnesses I am healthy and capable of caring for my children, husband, and home. I am grateful I can cook and clean. I am grateful that I can play and run with my children and watch them grow.

Home Canned Food

Today I am grateful for the ability I have to can some of our own food. I have been working on canning applesauce this week and it has been a great deal of work with my 2 young children + 2 young children I babysit running around. It has been a slow process (which is not even close to over yet). I have really enjoyed canning and I get so excited when I finish at how much food we have saved for the winter.  I especially love canning things that we have grown in our garden and greatly appreciate when I can get food from friends and neighbors to can. Sometimes while in the middle of busy canning times I get overwhelmed with the amount of work I have to do and how much time it takes, but I frequently remind myself of the blessings this food brings to our family all year round and am very grateful that I have such yummy wholesome food for us to eat.

A Month of Thanks

Can I really do it?  I don't know, but we'll give it a whirl.  We'll see if I can post something I'm grateful for every day in November (while maybe catching up on some blogging too!)  Today...

This man, the most amazing hubby for me, EVER!

I love him! He saves me from my crazy and helps me remember what is important in life. He balances me out so perfectly. He is my best friend. He is an amazing father. He is a hard worker. We are not perfect, but we are perfect for each other!

...Still In Love

These two are best friends!  They love each other SO much and when David is asked who his best friend is, he'll say Becca (okay, so that is of course when he doesn't say Thomas--as in Thomas the Train).

Do they fight, of course!  They frequently terrorize each other and it could drive a mom insane if they did love each other so much.

I hope they always look out for each other as much as they do now...

First Year In Review

 

 

 So I missed Becca's one year post, but honestly what can I say about this girl that I haven't said before!

We love her, couldn't imagine life without her...

End of story! :)

David 2.5

David is 2 1/2!  Here's a little bit about the latest version of our crazy monkey.  David 2.5...

-Never wants to miss out on a photo shoot.  If I get out the camera he begs me to take pictures of him or wants to stand in front of Becca (until I actually try to take a photo of him and then he often runs and hides behind the curtains or a chair or table.)  So here's a picture of him eating :)

 

-On one of our trips to Salt Lake this summer David decided to wave to all the cars driving by.  It was SO cute and he even got some waves back.

-We loved watching the Olympics and while they were happening we watched far too much television! :)  But David learned a few new sports and had to try them out. . . 2 of our CrAzIeSt have been hanging from every bar, chain, or fence he can (gymnastics) and this. . .

 David jumping over these bars for our baby swing and bouncy chair that I was trying to take down a put away.  Yep, he's going to be a hurdler, just like his daddy.

-So big!  I was trying to get a picture with his dog (the one I took pictures of him with every month his first year), but he's kind of a hoarder and had to have his dog, Becca's cat and both dolls AND he had to lay on them so Becca wouldn't get them.  He sleeps with all kinds of things in his bed (hopefully this is normal or else we're in for a wild ride with this one).  Tonight I took 3 balls and about 10 small toys from his bed and let him keep 3 or 4 toys with him.

-David loves the camera (or at least playing with cameras).  This one is obviously a toy, but he is always trying to get my camera or the camera on my phone and taking pictures (not always decipherable).

-David taking pictures of Becca

-He loves to read and tell stories.  He has become a lot more interactive in his play over the last couple of months.  His vocabulary also continues to expand.  We had a lesson in FHE a couple of weeks ago about temples.  This last week we went on a little camping trip and to help Brett's brother's family move and told David we were going to the mountains to camp.  As we drove through the mountains David kept pointing at the mountains and calling them temples.  Then I would tell him they were mountains and he would proceed to sing "I love to see the mountains. . ."  I can't tell you how many times we had this EXACT same conversation, but it was A LOT.  He also calls cup lids bottles and makes up words for things he doesn't know.

-He has become quite inquisitive.  He's always asking "Mom, what's that for?" or "what's that?"

-He loves to sing.  He also always has to have music when we sing, so if we start to sing a song he'll tell me "wait mom, I get my music (or piano)" and then he runs to the organ find a random piece of music and bring is back to sing our song.

Getting Bigger!

  

I can't believe how quickly the time is going by!  Becca is SO fun and has been such a sweet little blessing in our home.  She is almost always happy and is so quick to smile and laugh.  She is an affectionate and cuddly little girl.  She adores her family (brother, mom and dad) and keeps getting BIGGER!

This last month Becca:

-Started walking!  She still LOVES to be carried and gets around faster by crawling, but she took her first steps and is getting more and more daring at home. . . when we are away or in an unfamiliar environment (which has been quite frequent this summer) she is more hesitant and won't walk nearly as much as she does at home.

Watch out world!!  Here I come!

-Got 1 more tooth this month.  She now has 4 on top, 2 on bottom.

-Has begun to imitate speech and is gaining some more new words. Bath, duck, this (while pointing at something she wants).

-She loves to play trucks and cars, especially with her brother.  She loves to play anything with her brother.

-She is an eater!  She'll eat anything and everything.  She is also a big eater just like her brother was at this age.  This is Becca covered in red from beets from our garden!  YUMMY!

-Loves to swing and be outside.