Celebration Week in Quarantine

We kicked off the Crossley week with April Fool's Day/Our 9th Anniversary. The night before I drew mustaches on the kids and then acted like there wasn't anything on their faces when they woke up. It was pretty entertaining to hear Chet and Austin: "Austin, why do you have a mustache on your face?" "You have a mustache on your face too!" All of this was done in a grumpy, just woke up, manner. Mariah was pretty tickled about it all. And that was the extent of the jokes in our house that day. 

 We were able to get a babysitter to watch the kids so that Tanner and I could run some errands. It's hard to get too romantic during a pandemic but we tried. We initially were going to order sushi to go from a restaurant that appeared open online but wasn't. So we settled for drive through and then did some home project and grocery shopping. But it was still wonderful; thats what staying in the house for weeks will do to ya. Lowered expectations are wonderful.

 I insisted on a blurry family selfie, I knew this was the best we were going to get and I'd be pushing my luck to ask for a do-over. Although we've only been married for 9 years I feel like we have done a lot. Four children, six states, multiple surgeries, medical school, residency...we've done a heap of livin' these last nine years. It hasn't always been peachy but it has been just what we needed. I'm grateful for the growth we have made and that we love each other even more through it all. 

And just for fun, here's a cheesy photo of us from our honeymoon. We are now at the point where we feel old when we see pictures of us as newlyweds. 

The next day was Tanner's birthday. He took the day off because we were supposed to be picking up his parents from the airport, but COVID-19 ruined that plan. So we ordered steak from a local restaurant and enjoyed Tanner's traditional strawberry shortcake. Tanner bought a chainsaw for his birthday because his wife is a horrible gift giver, but the food was good and thats really his love language. 

The oldest three made birthday pictures for Tanner too: 

 I'm not sure what Austin's was...

Chet's said, Dad I love you. You are the best dad. Happy Birthday Dad.

Mariah's trying to be funny, and it's cute. 

 The next day I got a wild hair and decided to paint the kids bathroom. Chet was so excited to remove the wallpaper and was actually a good help. I was able to convince Austin that it would be really fun to pick up the wallpaper fragments and Mariah danced and did lip sync while watching herself in the mirror. So I guess she played her part in entertainment. 

 Eliza wanted to help tape off the bathroom and was very proud of the work she did. 

 After being up way too late decorating and painting the bathroom, Mariah woke us up bright and early for her birthday. She was satisfied with the decorations, phew, and thought her new mirror made her room "look like a castle!". We had Birthday/Conference crepes and thoroughly enjoyed them. Conference was wonderful and the weather was beautiful so we could play outside between sessions. 

Mariah set up a Conference Game for Chet. While using his slingshot his goal was to hit all the good choices. I really enjoyed how glamorous Mariah made me look in the pictures, I often do housework in ball gowns. 

 Mariah said this is what I actually look like...nice

 Mariah got lots of books, some decorations for her room, chokers and a dress from Grandpa and Grandma Young. 

 I decorated the cake with the children around and stayed nice and calm the whole time. I think the spirit of conference helped me. 

 I gave each of them frosting rings just like my mom used to when we were kids. And then I made Tanner document it because if you don't take a picture it never happened. Thats why dad is the "fun one", because mom is behind the camera documenting it all. 

 We had Hawaiian Haystacks for dinner and then ate Mariah's birthday cake. Which according to my children was "beautiful and tasted good, not like Mariah's Unicorn cake which was beautiful but disgusting. Or Austin's Monster cake which was delicious but ugly." They are my food critics. 

 Austin fell asleep within minutes of the evening session of Conference. As President Uchtdorf says, "There's nothing better than a conference nap.". Or something like that. 

When I first put up the pictures of the First Presidency and twelve Apostles, Gus was totally freaked out. He was barking and growling and we got a good laugh out of it. But in all sincerity, I'm so grateful that through the turmoil and trouble of this time that there were millions gathered together in their own homes listening to messages of peace from inspired leaders. If you aren't a member of our faith and are curious about what General Conference is you can find out more at churchofjesuschrist.org . 

Life Lately

We had a glorious two weeks with Natalie here. She is such a joy to be around and we are still going through "Aunt Nattie" withdrawals.

 We got to celebrate her Birthday

 She and the kids made homemade kites and flew them on a warm, blustery day.

 The older three had to show her "dead tree" and it's wonderful climbing opportunities. And they even played a great game of soccer that day. 

 It was nice having someone else around to take pictures of us. Our own personal photographer.

Tanner and Natalie whipped out a bench as well! 

They also woke up early one morning and visited some Church History sites in Missouri. Their favorite was Adam-ondi-Ahman at sunrise. They were able to walk around and even found the foundation of a home. 

 Mariah was able to go to an activity with the girls her age at church. They even made her a bracelet on the day that she missed. They were all so proud of their St. Patrick's Day bows. 

Brittany and Baydon's family came down one weekend and we had a great time. Brittany, Natalie and I got a good workout in and Eliza even joined us towards the end. 

 We had the Hilton's famous sushi that night for dinner. 

The next morning we had our first in home Sacrament meeting. Tanner and Baydon blessed and passed the Sacrament and we then had a little Testimony meeting followed up with a primary lesson. 

This was during the prelude music. Right after this picture was taken Eliza burst into tears. I don't think she knew how to handle the changes and solemnity that day. I understand though, this COVID-19 has made me want to bawl a few times too.  

The next day we took Natalie to the airport and Brittany and I decided to brave Costco. It could have been crazier, but I was surprised with how busy it was on a Monday. And there was almost no meat...Iowans want to make sure they never run out of meat apparently. We then ate Pizza outside on the little patch of grass in front of the car because they had taken out all the tables and chairs. I went to Walmart on the way home too and once again, no meat. So we might be having more than "meatless Mondays". 

Because we homeschool, there hasn't been too much of an adjustment for the kids. They have been doing the usual with a few changes. They now have piano through Zoom and all their other activities have been cancelled, but I'm happy to see that they have been happy to just be together. I'm so grateful that they are friends. I'm more stir crazy than anyone else but the kids keep me busy enough to not feel too sorry for myself. We are blessed with a home and food to eat and that Tanner still is working and making money. We're just praying that everyone can get healthy sooner than later. 

Westward Ho!

I decided to be brave and drive with the kids out to my parents. I knew when we decided to accept the job in Iowa that the day would come where I would drive out west alone. I wasn't looking forward to it, and I didn't think it would happen as soon as it did, but it went way better than I ever thought it would. Mariah and Chet were such great helpers and Austin and Eliza had wonderful attitudes. Tanner had gone to Costco and bought us a lot of treats and snacks which helped a lot; add in a good audiobook and some tunes and we were good to go!

We woke up bright and early Monday morning and headed out. I was hoping to make it to Laramie and it was a beautiful, clear and sunny day, but once I reached I-80, I began to see signs that said the interstate was closed in Wyoming. That was really throwing off all my grand plans. We stopped at the Pioneer Museum in Nebraska so the kids could get some wiggles out and I could do some research on the road conditions.

We went through a maze that the kids thought they escaped out of but in reality we had just walked back out of the entrance. I was very relieved when Mariah didn't look back and see that it was the entrance we were coming back out of because Chet was determined that we were going to make it out without any cheating. It was windy and cold and the kids kept running ahead before I could tell them which direction to turn so we could have been in there for hours. If my deception was wrong then I don't want to be right.

The museum was just the right size and I counted it as a field trip and a school day; I love when it works out that way. Everyone was terrified of the escalator but we all were brave and made it through.

 Austin was not in the mood for pictures, so in ten years when he wonders why there aren't many pictures of him as a four year old we can tell him we tried real hard but short of tying him down, it wasn't going to happen.

 After researching road conditions I decided to keep driving until I got to the Nebraska/Wyoming border and then if the roads were still closed we could stay there. The roads were open into Wyoming so we kept going. It was a little eery because I was the only car on the interstate heading into and driving through Wyoming. All the rest were Semis. I didn't pass another car all the way to Laramie. You know that feeling that you're the only one who doesn't know something? I felt that the whole drive, but the roads were clear and we made it to Laramie. I took the kids swimming that night, that was the carrot I dangled in front of them for most of the drive. I was a little nervous about all of us falling asleep together but I just turned on an audiobook and they were all asleep in minutes. I started out the night sleeping with Austin but that didn't last long. I ended up switching him with Mariah so I could actually fall asleep.

The next day I had planned to stay in Salt Lake City but we got up nice and early and were on the road by 7 so I decided I might as well head all the way to my parents. We stopped at Little America for their $0.70 ice cream cones. It was so funny watching Eliza follow Austin around the gas station clapping her hands and saying, "Austie, no!" whenever Austin touched something. I stopped at the Hemmert's in Elko and Emily was so sweet and made dinner for us. Then we went the rest of the way to the ranch.

It was so fun to be at my parents for a week. We rode horses and 4-wheelers; Eliza took a nice sink and there were several baths in the "rocket" tub (rocket/jet, it gets confusing). We got some good cousin time with Dan and Katie's boys who introduced us to the joy of Pokemon cards. There was some sickness but we were able to get it all out of our systems before we left for Utah.

 Papa Ralph put just "a little bit" of soap in the tub. 

 Mariah, Chet, and Austin were on the 4-wheeler all day and were covered in dust. Good ol' Nevada.

 Wednesday morning we headed back to SLC to pick up Tanner at the airport and have a little Crossley family reunion. The first night we got to spend some time with a bunch of cute baby goats.

The next night we got to sneak away for a little Badger Creek Reunion. It was so wonderful to see some of my dearest friends and we missed those who couldn't make it.

The kids had a blast with all of their cousins. There was a lot of wrestling, and jumping on the trampoline. One day they got out some pioneer costumes and played cowboys and robbers. There were van seats out in the garage and they turned that into their stagecoach. It was pretty epic.

The whole wonderful family

All the adults went to the temple to do sealings with some family names. Tanner and I were sealed for a couple named Chester and Irene (the name of my paternal grandfather and maternal grandmother), which was a special experience for me. I love hearing the beautiful promises and counsel given in the temple ceremony.

We also got to spend some time with Uncle Sevvy on the BYU campus. We went to the Bean museum and then decided we should go to the fine art gallery and be as loud as we possibly could, or at least I'm pretty sure that was Eliza's goal. All that boisterousness had to be followed up with ice cream from the creamery. It wasn't long enough but we were so happy we got to spend some time with him.

Monday morning we headed back home with an extra passenger. Natalie rode out to spend some time with us. The kids weren't as good on the drive back but it still wasn't too bad. I-80 was closed for real so we took the Southern route through Colorado which is much prettier but has more curvy roads. Eliza threw up but after a couple dozen wipes we got her and the car seat cleaned up.

 We had an hour or so where all the children slept and it was glorious. Just looking at Austin's sleeping position hurts me, but he slept just fine that way.

It was an exhausting trip but it is always worth it when family is involved. 

Austin is 4!

Austin's actual birthday was pretty low key because we celebrated it earlier in the month. But I made sure to have some decorations up for him in the morning (mainly because he and Chet kept reminding me) and he got to pick what he wanted for breakfast, sugary cereal, which I was thrilled about. The Hiltons came over and we had his requested pizza for lunch and then Brittany made us her delicious sushi for dinner. 

Mom: What is your favorite color?

Austin: Umm...owange.

Mom: What is your favorite food?
Austin: Sushi

Mom: What is your favorite animal?
Austin: Dagon...no, dinosaur! 

Mom: What is your favorite book?
Austin: Dr. Suess books

Mom: What is your favorite movie?
Austin: I don't know...Petah Pan! 

This is where Austin hides during scary parts of movies.   

                    

Mom: What is your favorite song?

Austin: Pish Pash (Splish Splash)

Mom: Who is your scripture hero?
Austin: Captain Mowoni (Lately he has been bringing me scriptures asking me to read to him.)

Mom: What is your favorite dessert?
Austin: Ice Ceam

Mom: What do you like to do for fun? 
Austin: Play with toys; my tractors are my favorite. (He and Chet use puff balls and mini blocks to scoop up with their tractors.)

Mom: What is your favorite thing to do with Mom?
Austin: Cooking and Baking (Almost every dinner prep, he is right next to me on a chair demanding to help. And Eliza is usually right there with him. It can get a little chaotic.)

My favorite thing to do with him is snuggle him to sleep for his rare naps. 

Mom: What is your favorite thing to do with Dad?
Austin: Go to Hockey games

Mom: What is your favorite thing to do with Mariah?
Austin: Play with Toys 

Mom: What is your favorite thing to do with Chet?

Austin: Play with race cars 

These boys are still hot and cold but I'm hoping they are building a relationship that will last forever. 

Mom: What is your favorite thing to do with Eliza? 
Austin: Play with her

Eliza tries to imitate Austin. She thinks he's real cool. 

Mom: Who is your best friend?
Austin: Whose the boy who has all those guns? Josiah. (Now we know how Austin decided who will be his friend...we may need to work on that)

Mom: What do you want to be when you grow up?
Austin: A cowboy. 

For several months, Austin would bring me his special puppy and ask me to swaddle it at bedtime. It was adorable. 

Austin is a very sweet, sensitive little boy. It can be hard to understand what he is saying, especially when he gets excited. But his adorable animated face during his stories is my favorite. He is really great during school, often going and playing with magnets or blocks. He is also picking up a lot from what I teach Mariah and Chet. 

And here's a few funny things Austin has said,

"Sometimes I do high toots and low toots."

Mom: What did you learn in church today?

Austin: Not to pee in our beds. 

Mom: What else? 

Austin: Not to wake our family up

Very important things that all three and four year olds should learn. 

"When Mariah grows up I want to marry her." 

One day I had told Chet that he should come and talk to me if he got frustrated with Austin. A few minutes later Austin came to me wanting to tell me that Chet was bugging him, and said, "I'm frustrating". Chet would probably agree. 

Mariah told us that she was in 3rd Nephi and Austin said, "When I do scriptures I'll be in last Nephi." 

Austin loves "wolky" eggs and one day while I was making them he said, "Children in the jungle eat raw eggs, not children in the desert." 

Austin was telling me about his make believe and said this, "And then I went out to adventure the world." 

"Is asparagus an animal or a plant? It has pokies on it, maybe its a dinosaur!"

Austin has started to fix his own hair and one day he was distraught about something Mariah and Chet were telling him to do. "I can't lay down, I have a hairdo!"

       

Austin loves to laugh, snuggle and play. We love him so much and are so grateful he is in our family.