Pizza, Playing, Pets

Personal pan pizzas made at home while listening and dancing to The Greatest Showman and still hanging out in pajamas seems like the perfect way to end a wintery day.

Pizza done family size with a variety of toppings also ends any day well.

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I have learned, through raising five boys, that the imagination often plays gender neutral.

But, even the prettiest of wands can be turned into a weapon.

We have not a speck of bowling skill among us but we know how to have a great time!

However, the boys do have great basketball skills and they very much enjoyed spending a couple of months playing in the city leagues.

Because of their ages they were in different leagues so we were running from one school to another for overlapping games. Hyrum is used to playing with all the older boys in our neighborhood so he struggled with the immaturity of his age group. Nathan's team was great to let him in on practices and gave him hope for future seasons.

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Charlie is pretty easy going, especially with Harrison flaunting his seniority around.

At 14 years old, we pretty much let the old guy have his way. When Harrison plopped himself down on the edge of Charlie's bed, Charlie thoughts that all the room he would want. A few stretches later and Charlie moved to the couch while Harrison curled himself into a comfy crescent and snoozed away the afternoon.

I've watched Nathan and Hyrum fight over the bathroom sink for brushing teeth but this was a first to see Oliver and Harrison fighting over the faucet for a drink.

Charlie's fluffy ears make the perfect messy bun!

With the trampoline frame as their training platform, Hryum and Oliver pretended to be in the circus.

Justin has admitted that he didn't fully understand how much he appreciated the unspoken love of a pet until he left home and returned months later. A fact that was proven when he actually paid to adopt not only one but two cats during his first semester of college.

 It never fails, when he is home he is a magnet for pet cuddles and shedding fur. It's nice to see him relax into them, setting aside the stress of school, work and training.

Justin's cats are rather skittish, especially the momma cat, Belle. I seldom saw them when I visited because Belle was always hiding and Gus was usually near her or hiding under a bed. However, after spending the night there, I woke up to find them both snuggled up with me. I cautiously reached for my phone, careful not to frighten them, and quickly snapped a couple of pictures, knowing that at any sound, they could both bolt.

Happy Valentine's Day

Grandparent's and siblings were blessed with this cute homemade valentine from Nathan and Hyrum.

Strings were strung and the boys had fun! Their exclamations at the increased difficulty since last year was very satisfying since I only had two strings to run this year and needed to put all my best pranks into it.

We all enjoyed animal cuddles, a few sweets, and lovey story time at the end of the stringy adventure.

The boys and I took Levi and Daymia a basket of dinner and a big ball of yarn (nestled with treats tied randomly throughout yarn) for their evening entertainment. I loved Levi's excitement at being able to participate in a tradition from his childhood.

On a random day in February, LeRoy received messages from both Levi and Justin. He wondered if I had prompted it because they came a day apart and at the same time, but it came spontaneously from them.

It's wonderful when our children start to see the best in our quirks and personalities.

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The Valentine Lion

Hyrum is not particularly fond of stuffed animals. He tries to be because Nathan would sleep with an entire bed full of them if I let him, but he doesn't attach to them. Over the last several months he hadn't been able to sleep well and kept ending up in our room on the floor like he did from ages 2-6.
It always frustrated LeRoy that I would let him sleep on the floor at my side of the bed but I didn't know what to do other than force him to just "get over it" in his own bed, which I didn't see as building a healthy nighttime routine. He finally grew out of it around age 6 so I was surprised when it came up again when he was nearly 10.

We had moved the boys downstairs into the empty basement so that Papa wouldn't have to do the stairs when he was here for Levi's wedding. They were really excited about it and it lasted for about four months. Then Hyrum started crying nearly every night that he wanted to sleep with me or at least upstairs on the couch. He would usually end up there during the night without us knowing and then Nathan started to get frustrated that he was downstairs alone. After a couple months of this, I moved them back upstairs.

It didn't work. He still cried and went into a panic nearly every night at bedtime and even with me reading with him, praying with him, snuggling an extra long time with him, he still could not sleep. I researched the subject and tried teaching him breathing methods, thinking tricks, calming patterns and though he gave it a good effort, they didn't seem to work. I talked with teachers, asked probing questions about friends at school, strangers, activities he had been too. I wasn't finding any reason for this happening. He wasn't even complaining of bad dreams, just that he couldn't sleep. He would literally stay awake for most of the night. I know because it was keeping me up as well. The days were becoming tough with exhausted emotions and he couldn't focus during school because he was so sleepy.

When I was looking for items for their end-of-string treasures, this lion caught my attention. He was meant for Hyrum. I initially thought it odd and brushed it aside but the lion kept popping into my thoughts. I knew I couldn't give Hyrum a stuffed animal without giving Nathan one because Hyrum wouldn't care and Nathan would be sad. So, I created their treasures around this little lion.

I soon realized that he wasn't just a stuffed animal, he was to be a protector of sleep. After our string treasure hunt and stories, I explained that when I saw him, I knew he was meant for Hyrum. We discussed qualities in a lion: strong, brave, protector, and in our imaginations, cuddly. I also told him that the kiss lips on the lion represented me; a gentle kiss on his head to give him comfort. I also explained that I had chosen his valentine book specifically for him because it was about a mom who loved her little cub and I testified that Heavenly Father loves his little Hyrum even more than I do.

Shockingly, he fell asleep without tears and slept through that night with his arms held tight around his lion. Not every night was perfect but over the next month he got to where he no longer fought sleep and did quite well. A few months later and his sleeping struggles were a thing of the past.

Hyrum still isn't attached to a stuffed animal. He continued to sleep with the lion right up until the day school ended. Now he sits on the bookshelf by his bed, seemingly unnoticed but with his purpose complete and a glance of appreciation from me.

Birthday Boys: Levi & Justin

2000 - Levi age 8, Justin age 1

As the boys birthdays came in January 10th and February 9th, I found myself looking through old scrapbooks and found this first glimpse of their futures.

Our budding computer geniuses are now flourishing in 2018. Levi and Justin are my go-to tech team. I don't understand a word of their coding/tech/computer language and possibly only half of what they explain to me, but I trust them completely! I'm so proud of these men!

2018 - Levi age 26, Justin age 19

The computer got much smaller but the boys have grown in many ways. They are both establishing successful adult lives and I couldn't be more proud of the men they are becoming!