February and a BIG surprise

February 2015 will always be a very memorable one for me because we got quite a big surprise!  We are having another baby in October!!!

Now I will openly admit that this baby was not planned.  But, I will also say that I felt very spiritually prepared for this baby.  Which I know seems a little odd, so let me explain.  Ever since I had Hudson I kept feeling like we were supposed to have another baby, and pretty soon.  I mostly just kind of laughed, cause that's a little crazy, but the thought didn't go away.  I did bring it up to Chris a few times, and, while he wasn't 100% against the idea, he wasn't feeling it the same way I was.  So then I did some fasting and praying and went to the temple and spent a lot of time meditating on whether or not I was really supposed to have another one, or if I was just struggling with the idea that my child bearing years were wrapping up.  I prayed for a clear answer.  I just really wanted to feel at peace either way.  The whole time I was searching for this answer I still kept thinking, "You're going to have another one."  And then as spring approached and we were making plans for the upcoming months I had thoughts like, "Don't plan too many activities for the kids, you're going to be pregnant," or "Just be prepared that when you go on your ski trip you'll be pregnant."  Anyway, we never actually made a decision.   Hudson started in on his crazy 1-year-old stage, and I decided maybe we really were done, cause the thought of being pregnant and chasing him around was not very enticing.  Then, low and behold, I was pregnant.  I guess I got my clear answer.  The baby is due October 17.  I'm currently 15 weeks pregnant (as of April 23, 2015).  Hudson and #5 will be 22 months apart. I will say that, while it hasn't been easy, it's been more manageable than a few of my other pregnancies, and I'm very, very grateful. 

Anyway, on to the rest of February.  I spent the first couple of weeks in February frantically getting things done around the house in preparation for the on-set of morning sickness.   I also tried to enjoy the food that I knew I wouldn't be able to eat for the next 9 months: spicy mexican food, Coke Zero, chocolate.  Still can't eat any of those, still miss them.

I know I mentioned that at Christmas we went caroling at a nursing home.  It was a great experience and an awesome opportunity for the kids to serve.  We enjoyed it so much that we teamed up with another family and every other month we are taking turns planning service to do at the nursing home.  In February we made the residents little "Love Bug" magnets and we handed them out.  I love this because the kids can do it themselves.  It's hard to find a service project that young kids can do.  Usually its mom and dad dragging the kids along, or the kids donating mom and dad's money etc.  But the kids made the craft, and they handed them out and interacted with the residents. Both the kids and the residents loved it!

Madison, who I know I've mentioned before loves pinterest, found some fun ideas for her Valentine box and her Valentines for her class this year, so we got a little crafty.  Here is her Valentine iPhone:

Colton and I did a little baking one day.  We made special strawberry cupcakes.  This kid is such a great guy, and I'm seriously going to miss him next year when he goes to kindergarten. 

One morning Hudson sat on my lap and let me sing to him for about 20 minutes while Colton was at speech.  This never happens.  I loved it.

Colton and I made this fun little bag for his Valentines.  Isn't he such a doll?!

This was Valentine's lunch.  

Madison made little iPods with candy headphones to match her box.

I even got fancy and figured out how print a screenshot of my phone so that the iPods looked real. 

Jaxon wasn't supposed to make a Valentine box, but last minute he said that some of his friends had, and he really wanted one.  So I whipped this one up.  He loved it.  He was really impressed that I downloaded the Lego font for his name.

I was in charge of Madison's class party at school.  I was running around the whole time, so I took no pictures.  But I did stop by Jaxon's party on the way out the door.  

Instead of going on a date just the two of us, Chris and I took turns taking the kids on Valentine dates.  I took the boys to the mall and they opted to use their date budget on Legos instead of bowling or a movie.  Madison and Chris went bowling at Main Event.

Valentine's Day Jaxon had his last basketball game.  I got some Valentine cuddles from my buddy.  I know it's weird to take a picture every time he sits still, but it's really so rare that I feel obligated to.  

  Jaxon really enjoyed basketball.  Again, he's really not a natural athlete, but he did love it!

Colton got a big surprise from a friend of his.  Colton's friend gave, yes for FREE, Colton his old Power Wheels.  In case you can't tell, Colton was beyond thrilled.  And so was I, because I had no plans to ever purchase one. 

I finally had it with Hudson emptying my cupboards.  For a while it was fine, I don't mind kids playing in the tupperware or with the pots and pans.  But Hudson got to the point where he was emptying every cupboard and spreading the contents all over the house.  (Pots and pans in my closet? I don't think so.)  I finally insisted on child locks.  Thankfully Chris loves me and he got right on it. 

One of my projects before morning sickness set in was to hang some pictures in our piano room.   This room is still a work-in-progress but it's getting there.  I printed off some family history pictures to hang above the piano.  I love them.  They tell such awesome stories.  

This is just a funny story.  One day at Walmart a very sweet lady noticed that Hudson had a runny nose.  She offered to get him some kleenex, which I appreciated and thought was very kind of her.  This is what she gave me.  I was cracking up.  

Colton and Jaxon (mostly Jaxon) have awesome imaginations.  They are always coming up with fun games to play, like space exploration. 

Hudson got the stomach flu one day, which was terrible.  But it did involve singing and cuddling.  Mostly though, it was terrible.  Puking babies are like loose cannons.  I hate doing puke laundry.  

Madison is working on finishing up her Faith in God activities for age 9.  She had to make a nutritious dinner for one of them.  She made pasta and bread and fruit salad.  

At the end of February we had some ice days.  It was a little random because most of February was nice and warm and mild.  The kids were thrilled though, because they got to skip two days of school.  

Chris had the great idea to tie a rope to the Powerwheels to pull the kids.  The Powerwheels is totally gutless, but they loved it. 

Cute brothers.  

Hudson learned to "cheese."  It's awesome!

I don't know how the boys ended up in shorts on the trampoline with a bunch of ice, but I'll chalk it up to mom being sick.  

My daffodils bloomed in the nice February weather, and then froze in the ice.  Thankfully they survived. 

It snowed one afternoon after the ice days.  Colton and I ran outside to build a tiny snowman because I figured that would be the only real snow we got in 2015.  Ha ha, boy was I wrong.