Sweet Little Head

Ethan has All State Jazz band in St. George this weekend. Corey took him down today, they left at 11. They took Abi, Lily, and Sophi with them. Natalie decided to stay home because she didn't want to miss a birthday party for her friend on Saturday. So the house is a lot quieter with just seven kids! It has slowed down a little bit and I'm able to soak up this time with Peter just a little bit more. I was holding him steady this evening, and he held his head up using my cheek as some support. I got this picture of him in the mirror -

Isn't he cute!? What a sweet little head. He is so pretty!

Something else fun today - I got a flower delivery from our orthodontist!

Have I ever mentioned that we love McDonough Orthodontics?

They are so nice.

Lucky Girls

Natalie said the cutest thing this morning as she held Peter -

"Girls are lucky, cause they get to grow up and be a mom and have a baby and get to look at it and hold it so much!!!" Yes, all my daughters are jealous of me and how much time I get to hold the baby. Here are a few precious pictures of Natalie holding Peter last Friday after school.

He was awake and staring up at her.

Yes, we've got a little future mother on our hands. She loves babies!

Today at the bus stop I was sharing with another mom what Natalie said, and Natalie continued her happiness - "Girls are the best! I always wanted to be a girl!" She's right - being a girl and being a mom is the luckiest! 

Midway Ice Castle

Tonight we went up with some of my siblings to see the Ice Castle in Midway. I got an email inviting me to a VIP event at the Ice Castle and offering me free admission. Now I'm not sure how I got on that email list, but I thought we'd try it out and see if it was legit. So I rsvp'd for complimentary tickets for me and "my group", I threw out the invite to my siblings, and we all met up there tonight. Turns out it was for real! So we got in for free! (Hibberts love that!) ...and we got a complimentary group photo...

...AND they gave us tickets for a free $5 treat for each of us (although the little snack shack ran out of food - only had 3 cinnamon rolls left and a plate of broken cookies, which my kids gladly took). It was a fun outing! We only got a little lost on the way, my fault, cause I didn't think Google Maps was leading us to the right place. But they were, so I turned around. Beka and Matt got there first, Lily drove up with them. They waited at the ticket office. We left our home around 6:15, got there about an hour later. We parked, and it was cold - 10 degrees. As I was leaving, Corey requested that I not take a new baby out into the cold, which made sense. So Wesley stayed in the car with Peter and was going to call me if Peter woke up. But then Wesley's phone was almost dead (2%) so my brother we went and got them and they came into the ticket office.

Owen and Daniel looked super cute. I think toddlers in snow gear are just adorable.

I was laughing at Daniel, which made him smile, but he was trying not to smile, which made me laugh even harder and then made him try not to smile more. 

Pretty stinkin' cute

I walked to the ice castle just to be in the big group photo, then I went in and quickly went out the exit (which was hard to find) and to the gift shop where it was warm for Peter. Wesley stayed in there with Peter. I went back in the exit to possibly help Natalie go to the bathroom, but once I got there she insisted that she was fine and didn't need to go. So we got our treats. Daniel eating a piece of cookies -

I didn't get a lot of pictures or footage of us in the castle cause I was going back and forth with kids, but my siblings took some cute pictures. 

I'll try to upload them later. It was fun, they had slides and small tunnels to walk through, the kids had a lot of fun.

Sophi decided she was super cold, and Owen was done, so I took them to the gift shop. Soon Beka showed up with Daniel and Natalie. Daniel finished Sophi's cinnamon roll as he made himself comfortable on the floor

And then we watched Lindsay Stirling play her violin in the ice castle

I helped Natalie go to the bathroom, and then she got mad when I told her she was done and we weren't going back out into the castle. It was cold, and they were almost closed anyway. Sorry little girl!

Peter slept the whole time. We drove home and got back at 10. Peter did wake up and start to fuss a little bit the last 15 min of the drive home, so I hurried in and fed him. He's a good little baby.

It was a fun extended family outing. We don't get together much with my siblings, but this has inspired me to try to do a little more with them. Like maybe we can shoot for getting together once every 3 months? We'll see. Good times.

Kitchen Lockdown

Corey arranged for some food intervention for our family yesterday. We have wonderful neighbors, and as usually happens after a baby is born, many of them have brought dinner over to us. Last night was the last night of meals (but we also still had 3 containers of leftovers from other meals cause the kids haven't eaten much of it yet). So last night, I think the tipping point came when one of the kids went to the pantry for a bagel as I was setting the table and Corey and I were both getting the food ready. That represents one facet of the problem we have going on. We have so many kids, with so many particular food likes and dislikes, that when it comes to meal time, they tend to make their own thing if they don't like what is being served. Another problem is after school - kids get home between 3 and 4, and everyone comes home hungry and is cooking their own thing and eating it between 4-5. So when dinner comes at 6, you can guess that a majority of them do not feel hungry. If they don't like what was made for dinner, they just don't eat and will make their own thing later around 7 or 8. So, those are several of the problems we are facing. Oh, and also all that cooking by all those people at all different times means there is always a mess in the kitchen and there are always lots of kids dirtying dishes.

And THEN, they've had the nerve to complain to us the past few days about how "We never have dinner!" Corey said "I don't know if you guys have noticed... but we've had dinner meals brought to us over the past ten days! I think the problem is you guys don't know how to sit down and eat!"

So, last night Corey made a run to Lowe's. He had an idea. I knew what the idea was cause before he left he took off a handle from one of the pantry doors. He was going to figure out a way to lock the kitchen up. My initial feeling was that it seemed like a big and rather drastic measure to take - to lock the pantry doors. Plus, that's not going to solve the problem, cause there's still the fridge and the fridges in the garage, and I don't think we should drill a lock in them or anything... "Trust me, I think this will work..."

He came home and I was upstairs with Peter, but I could hear the banging and drilling. Meet our new kitchen pantry handle...

And this locked door quickly led us to know one of our chief food mess culprits, or as Corey said "I think we found the leak..."

This little girl (who didn't eat her dinner last night, and who made a pb and jelly sandwich while Corey was gone at the store) proceeded to wail for food as she rolled around on the floor, crying for treats. We gathered for family prayer, Natalie was still weeping and wailing on the floor in front of us all, and Corey pointed to her to show all the other kids the reason for the now locked pantries "I think this represents that we have a problem..." They all agreed.

Today they have been a little surprised by how often they mindlessly go over to fridge and open it (although they can't open it right now - Corey got a bike lock for the fridge). Lily still went over to the fridge over and over again. She got a knife and asked "Can I cut this?" 

No, but thank you for asking. So we'll see how this goes. Corey felt much more relaxed last nigth when the kitchen was closed. Plus we have a ton of good food being wasted. This could help with that (there were like 5 open jars of spaghetti sauce in the fridge, half of them going bad) I have thought for years (from our experiences in Chile and Brazil) that a kitchen that could be locked was a beautiful thing, it just seemed to not be possible here in America. But maybe we can have the best of both worlds.

Although the bike lock is a bit of a pain since it has to be wrapped around 5 times. We'll see...

So today, I made an after school snack - vegetables with hummus, fruit - bananas and apples, a few peanut butter sandwiches and a few quesedillas, and a bowl of nuts and dried berries - then also two things of left overs - and all that was out on the kitchen island, and then the pantry and fridge were locked down until dinner. If the kids were hungry, these were their options -

It felt good to have control over the food! No top ramen, no potatoes or pizza bread or whatever dozen other things they usually make.

I had Orange chicken with rice and veggies planned for dinner and they all sat and ate it. We'll start with easy meals that they like, but will probably work our way up to more plant based meals as we ease our way into this new habit and concept of sitting to eat at certain times! Such a revolutionary idea.

Tidying Up

Well, I finished watching all the Marie Kondo "Tidying Up" episodes. Today I put it to work a little bit in the basement, which has been a mess since Christmas happened. I haven't gotten a lot done yet, just as much as this little angel would let me...

He is a very very good baby. He cried a lot last Thursday night to Friday morning, but other than that he's been great. If he's eating he's happy. Here is a pic of him crying that the kids took. But he's nice when he's with me.

We're BFFs. Unfortunately he tends to like to visit with me at 3:30 am, which has thrown off my mornings, but it's all good. So, Yeah, I cleaned in the basement today. Got more done after the older kids were home to watch him. I went by Costco today and got more clear storage bins - going to switch out the cardboard boxes for the clear bins, cause Marie says it's helpful to be able to see what's in them. I organized a closet last week. I'm doing good at making our bed everyday.

I got a new cover for a body pillow that I like. It matches the blanket. I have to put that blanket on the bed cause the kids left a big black ink stain on it - from when it was stored in the top of the closet and they would climb up there for a little personal time, like in a clubhouse at the top of the closet. So when I got it out in December there was a big stain. So I put the blanket on there to hide it.

It's probably time for a new comforter cover. So there's a few random thoughts.

Hearing Screening

Ok - big win - I didn't sleep on the couch last night! Little Peter woke up a few times to nurse but he didn't cry and so I was able to stay in our room and in my bed and it kinda feels like I almost had a full night's sleep! I dare say I almost feel rested, yay! Thank you little boy!

Took these pics at 6:30 am and he was wide awake too - looks like we both got a good night's sleep. So that is a big win.

I took Peter back to the Hospital today - he had a hearing screening appointment on Monday, but we totally got dumped on by mother nature on Monday and had a ton of snow over night, so even though I cleared our driveway, the street wasn't plowed, so I didn't dare try to leave. I called to tell them I wouldn't make it in at 9. They rescheduled him for today. The streets were clear today. My sister came over to watch the kids, and Peter and I went in.

Little baby headphone. He passed his right ear, yay, so biliruben is good (that got checked last Thurs) and with his ear ok he's good until his 2 week appointment next Tuesday. It usually feels like the first month with a newborn is busy with doctor appointments. But it was a good day - got in 3 miles on the treadmill, I cleaned our bathroom, made our bed, and did laundry. I'm kinda starting over with homemaking life and am starting small again, counting up those little wins. Peter is nursing well and I kinda know his schedule a little bit, so maybe next week I might be ready to take it up a notch and plan to get things done.

Sleeping Pill

Peter is a little sleeping pill. Or he has the same effect as a sleeping pill. You can take a pill, or you can hold a newborn - the outcome is the same: you will doze off to dreamland. Here are a few of the pictures I've gotten of the kids asleep with our little bundle. Melodie on Friday, Jan 18

And on Saturday the 19th...

Lily on Sunday -

And Ethan yesterday, Jan 21st.

Hyrum and Wes haven't held Peter much yet, so no pics of them. I know Abi fell asleep with him once but I didn't get a picture of it. Sophi has had a bit of a cough, so I haven't let her hold Peter, and Natalie doesn't have a chance to doze off cause I don't let her hold him very long without supervision. But needless to say, this little boy gets lots of snuggling and love from all his siblings. (I don't think Corey's held him much yet...) Having a new baby in the home is a special time, we all love it.

One Week Old

Last night was a lunar eclipse - a "super blood wolf moon". We were able to see it from the laundry room. The moon was high in the sky, so it wasn't as cool as the one from September 2015 when it was just rising out of the canyon, but it was still neat to see - these astronomical wonders! What else is going on... oh! Our baby! Yes, this little angel is one week old today!

Here are a few pictures of the hospital that I didn't post last week - A lovely bouquet of flowers that Corey's parent's brought -

I got pictures of most of the kids holding Peter, but here are the few kids that I missed - Daniel holding his new baby brother -

Owen checking out the kid, and perhaps is wondering what this means for him...

Hyrum holding Peter -

Ethan ready for his turn -

And I know I posted one of Abi holding the baby, but this one Corey took was really cute. 

All of us sitting around - kids eating slushies, waiting for them to bring back the baby? I can't remember. Mel and Abi had gone to the cafeteria with a voucher to bring me some food.

This past week was a good week. We're getting to know this little soul and are figuring out a schedule, or if he has one. Things are good. I've been sleeping on the couch most nights. I start off in my bed, but then Peter wakes up and doesn't latch on quickly and starts to fuss... Owen and Daniel seem to wake up quickly to his cries, so I have to hustle out of the room with him or I'll have 3 little boys on my hands. So Peter and I are on the couch most nights. It's okay. Last Thursday night/Friday morning was really hard and he cried a lot, and I was crying too at 3:30 of exhaustion. He was seriously up and nursing or fussing from 12:30 until 5:30, and then he finally fell into a deep sleep. I told Corey that I would most likely be leaving movies on for the kids cause I needed a nap. Taking one day at a time, and giving myself grace and space as we enter this short season of our life with a newborn. It's a special time.

Name Deadline

I was going to call the hospital vital records today but they beat me to it. When we checked out on Tuesday night, reviewing the birth certificate papers was one thing we didn't cover. But I had left the yellow paper on the clipboard with the name blank and a note written to the side of it saying to call me if I hadn't called them. So I wasn't totally sure when they needed it by. Sometimes we've had 10 days or a week, I was hoping we'd have until Monday... but I was planning on calling today to see. I was entering the hospital numbers in my cell phone when I heard the house phone ring ..."Call from.... Alta View..." I told Abi to answer it. Sure enough, it was for me. "Hi Tiffanie, this is Bonnie." I remember Bonnie. "I need a name..." "Do you need it today?" "Yes." "Can I have an hour?" She said she'd give me an hour. Ok, the deadline is upon us. What do you want to be called, little man? Speak up now or forever hold your peace. He seems to be at a loss...

I didn't get any help from the baby. I texted Corey to let him know it was crunch time. Then called him. But he didn't answer his phone and hadn't seen my WhatsApp messages yet... I called a few more times but no answer. I finally got a hold of him at 1:30. My one hour alarm to call back was set to go off at 1:43. Poor Corey didn't have any mental power to contribute to this decision that I was forcing upon him. "I don't see what the hurry is. I need like a month... What happens if we don't call them back? Call her and give her my number, and then when she calls I won't answer it" (Have I said before that it might be a miracle we got married? Sometimes this guy just can't commit!) I texted him a list of names and my top 3 choices. He was driving but said he'd look at pictures of our little man and think about it when he arrived at work.

10 min passed, then 20... I called him at 2:20 when I felt like we were pushing our luck. We looked up the meanings of our top name choices. That actually made me like choice #2 more, but Corey finally admitted that he liked my top choice - Yay!! Some feedback! I called Bonnie and made it official, and I now announce that this little soul shall be called ~

Peter Benjamin Wride

Peter was my #1 choice for Daniel, too, but when we saw him, he didn't look like a Peter. This little guy has looked like a Peter to me, so I've been thinking it's Peter the whole time. We are going with Benjamin for the middle name cause Joseph liked Benjamin, so we do that in his honor and so that the two of them will have a brotherly bond even though Joseph's not going to meet him until he's a year and a half old! That's kinda crazy to think about.

I texted Corey "It's on the books. Call Bonnie asap if you want to change it. I love you" And then Corey said "For what it is worth, it was the one I liked the most, but I didn't want to tell you since I wasn't sure and didn't want you to just run with it." That made me almost throw up my hands - he's not going to tell me the one he likes lest it (gasp) influence our decision?!?! my reply - "Such a complicated process!" A few things I had texted him before the name was decided "Come on sweetie, we can do this! We're 100% for picking great names so far, we got this!" So, Peter, I hope you like your name.

He's thinking about it...

Naming the kids could arguably be one of the biggest hurdles we face as a couple!