Middle name madness

Ok, so after more discussions with Josh... and thanks to your comments, I think that we are going to go with Eliza. We just have to come up with a middle name. Why is this driving me crazy? Do we even need a middle name?
Martha mentioned Marian because that is my middle name, which I have always loved because I was named after my grandma. I might also add that it is Josh's favorite. I just have reservations about it because I have a cousin who named her daughter after my grandma. I have a great-grandma Emma Christine (my Grandpa Mac's mom) of whom I have heard only the highest praise of the way she lived her life, raised her children, and treated those around her. I do like Eliza Christine. Josh likes that one too, it's just not his favorite. I also have another great-grandma (my Grandpa Kremin's mom) whose name was Edna Mae, so I also really like Eliza Mae. (Whitney, I know you said you liked Mae too... but I also know the conversations we've had about names!) Kimball struggles with Mae because it's hard for him to realize that it can be a name too... not just the month she's born in! Another, after my Grandma Kremin is Eliza Joyce. If anyone who is aware of other family names that sound good with Eliza, please share! Also... please comment about which of these sounds the best to you!

Finally, Christmas...

So, here is a slide show of Christmas and then our trip to Daniel's Summit. Christmas Eve was at my mom's house. There was tons of yummy food, a white elephant exchange and Santa. The boys were so excited to see Santa and Kimball was saying, "He's here! He is really here!" Then he had to tell Santa all about how he had gotten his letter just the day before! Christmas day was fun and the boys just kept saying how this was "the best Christmas ever!" On the Monday after Christmas we went with my family to Daniel's Summit to hang out, swim, ride snowmobiles, and eat! I was kind of scared to go on the snowmobile, but I am glad I did and felt much safer when Josh was driving. With all the snow everywhere it all just looked white and it was hard for me to see the trail. The boys LOVED it of course, even if poor Bensy fell asleep on his ride. My little fish loved swimming too. They kept wanting to go back to the pool. It was great. Thanks to my mom and dad for the time together and the memories! I love you!

What's in a name?

I have tons of pictures to post and lots to catch up on since we had a great Christmas, McKay's 5th birthday, an eventful trip to Daniel's Summit Lodge, and a fun new year. I just don't want to take the time to wait for my frustratingly slow computer to download the pictures to slide.com or to even sort through them to pick out a few to post... so I will save that for another day, when it is not 9:00 at night and I am so so so sleepy.
For anyone who missed the last post, we are having another baby. I am 20 weeks (half way there, YIPEE) and yes, we are having a girl. Guess I am going to have to change the name of my blog. Anyway, if you haven't noticed, we have named each of our boys after a family member and then after a latter-day prophet. Joshua Kimball, John McKay, and Benson Mac. So, what do you name a girl? We don't want to pick just any name because we spent a lot of time picking the boys' names. We want her name to be significant in some way but also have family ties. The name we have been most decided (but not settled) on is Eliza (After Eliza R Snow, who was of course, a strong and righteous woman in the early days of the church. She is also Lorenzo Snow's older sister and actually was very influential in his conversion to the church.) Josh wasn't sure about it because he wanted it to feel a little more modern... so we have thought about giving her the name Eliza, and calling her Ella. For middle names, we have considered several different family names but just can't really come to a firm conclusion. Now I am starting to wonder if we just need to go back to the drawing board. Other names we have considered include: Hannah (Montana... grrr), Lucy (which we both love but unfortunately was wasted on a dog), Emma (which one of my cousins and his wife named their daughter), and Jessie (Josh thinks its more of a boy's name). Clearly, we are stuck when it comes to girl names. That is what this post is about. Any suggestions? Any comments on the afore mentioned names? I realize that some people keep names quiet to avoid such comments. I am welcoming them because I just can't feel as good about any of them as I did with the boys. Benson's was especially easy since it was actually the name I thought of first for Kimball. Anyway, please... let me know what you think...

Do you want to hear a secret??

Before I get to the surprise, I have to blog about our Christmas fun and our eighth anniversary... I posted this slideshow to catch up at least a little. We went to Holly Days and the boys had a blast. Benson insisted on wearing his "Polar Express robe" even though it was cold. The next day we went to get our Christmas tree and while Benson napped in the truck, Kimball and McKay broke out the sleds. As an early Christmas gift, Papa and Grammy gave the boys the Polar Express toy train. THEY LOVE IT! It is the perfect gift for my three little Polar Express fanatics.

Today Josh and I are celebrating our EIGHTH anniversary. I don't know how eight years go by so quickly but they do. So much has happened in the last eight years that has made me love him so much more than the day we were married. I can remember thinking that I understood what love was and how much I felt for him. I did love him, so much. I guess that love just grows and matures and deepens with the experiences (both good and bad) that you go through. I know that is what I have to look forward to as the years come and go. So, for our anniversary, we went to Salt Lake over the weekend and stayed for a night while the boys spent the night at Papa and Grammy's. We had a lot of fun and I am so thankful to Josh for always trying to remember our anniversary and to not let it get lost in all the Christmas activities. I recognize how lucky I am to have a Josh. He means so much to me and I sincerely love and appreciate the man that he is for me and for our family. Today he suprised me with flowers...

I love you, Josh!!

And now, if you have made it this far... I guess you really want to know what our surprise is...
So... here you go. We are having a baby! We have kept it mostly quiet for a long time to keep the boys from waiting for SO LONG! It is actually fun because I have two sisters-in-law that are due literally within days of my due date. I am 18 weeks, and this ultrasound is actually a shot of what gender the baby is. The doctor is about 90% sure and I guess we'll look again at my big ultrasound in a week or two, but in the meantime... I am pretty comfortable with his 90% certainty.

SO is anyone super ultrasound savvy and wanna take a guess??

BLAH!

Do you ever feel like you are busy and you are running around crazy but then you wonder what has happened to all the time? I get frustrated when I feel like I am not getting things done but I know that I have been busy. Christmas is coming up way too fast. I don't feel like I am ready yet, even though I don't really have a lot more to do. I guess I just feel like it is coming up so fast that I haven't had the chance to really feel in the Christmas mood yet. Does that make sense? I am actually feeling quite blah and somewhat depressed. I keep getting mad over stupid little things and then frustrated that I am letting myself get upset. However some things that I am upset about can't be changed or won't be and I still find myself wishing they could be. Sorry to be all Johnny Rain-cloud. I guess it just helps to get a little bit of what I am feeling out there. Even if I have to keep it vague.

Rub-a-double, 'er triple trouble

Look at these cute, sweet, innocent faces...

     ...and then think again. These little boys can get into trouble faster than I can blink! A few weeks ago, we had an even bigger incident than usual.  Josh is always better than me at checking the basement to be sure the lights are all turned off. As he was down stairs he freaked out and asked me to come down there. And what was the cause of the freak-out? Shattered glass. All over. The window pane was completely shattered.  Not a small one mind you.  A big, tall, let-as-much-light-in-as-possible window.
     And, as you pass me the mother-of-the-year award, again (maybe I should just keep it) I should back up and tell you that earlier that day, I got out of the shower, dressed, and then came out to check on the boys. I saw a piece of glass on the carpet and asked them where it came from.  McKay (the sly little devil) told me that it was a "treasure." I asked them where they got it and jumped to the conclusion that they had found it outside. They didn't object, so I scolded them for going outside while I was in the shower and told them to stay indoors if I was busy and couldn't watch them outside.
    So... fast forward to that night when we found the broken window. We decided that I would ask them about the "treasure" again and see if we could get them to come clean. The next morning they were silent for a minute and then led us downstairs to what they called "big trouble." After a lot of questions and listening to McKay and then to Kimball we found out that during my shower they had been racing from wall to wall, running into each window as they reached it. The repetitive force must have been enough to crack it and then during the next "lap" broke it. Kimball said, "Well, actually... I had been doing that exercise (my elliptical) and it gave me really big muscles. So then when we were racing it made me go super fast and I didn't even know that I turned into a super hero with super powers. That's how the window broke. So, that's why I can't do that exercise anymore."
     It was really hard for me not to bust up laughing because poor Kimball was serious as a heart attack. He really thought he must have super powers. That was the only logical explanation his mind could sort out for why he would be strong enough to break the window.
     We told them they had to do extra chores to earn the money to pay for it. I feel kinda bad because it's going to take each of them 75 days of doing 4 extra chores (a quarter each) to earn enough money. That's actually less than what we thought it would be, but I also want them to understand how serious it is. Is it too much to ask of a 6-year-old and an almost-5-year-old?
     On a related note, Kimball was folding extra laundry for an extra chore. My sweat pants were part of the pile and he flashed me a really big, enthusiastic smile and said, "Mom, you are the BIGGEST mom ever and you have REALLY big pants!"
     Awesome.

Not so all alone

So, I know I've got three little monkeys to keep me company, but it just isn't the same. I miss Josh. He went to a meeting/training for work and won't be home until tomorrow. I had such a busy, run-around day yesterday and then Benson was up so much of the night coughing that I have just felt terrible today. My sinuses are all congested, my head hurts, and I am oh-so sleepy. Then, bedtime rolls around and I am thankful for the quiet but then it has started to feel too quiet, and it makes me feel lonely. Where's my sweetie to snuggle up to and talk about our days and the kids and christmas and bills? I really miss you, Josh! Love you.