Alive

Yes we are all still alive and doing well. Haven't had time to blog but will make time soon! I love receiving all the Christmas cards with info and pictures. I am literally...
"dashing through the stores, searching for the deals
then rushing home to cook and clean and do it all again!"
(sung to the tune of jingle bells)

yes, this is cheesy but it's late and I'm tired. Why are holidays so stressful?

Better Late Then Never

These should have been posted eons ago but I was a negligent mother. Here are Trevor's first day of Kindergarten pictures (from 2 months ago)...

Excited

Distracted

Nervous

Impatient

He survived well and I survived with just a few tears.

A not-so-fun Halloween

I was so excited for Halloween this year. My kids are the in the perfect age group for a really fun Halloween and they had the cutest costumes (I will post pictures when I get them from my mom). My excitement for Halloween day ended quickly when I woke up very early and very sick. I got to be in bed all day passing a kidney stone (I know I'm so lucky). Not so much fun and don't want to do it again for awhile...no scratch that. I don't want to do it again ever. However, I am unfortunately prone to them and this one was not the first nor will it be last. Hope you all had a great Halloween...I've loved looking at all the fun costumes and the cute kids in them!

Catching Fall Before it's Gone

I've been so bad at blogging lately! Having two extra kids every day makes my life a lot more busy but I think I'm finally adjusted (I hope). We've been good...Trevor has had a wonderful couple months at kindergarten and I'm blown away at how much he's learned. I always thought that because I was a kinder teacher my kids would be completely prepared and even ahead when they started school. Not so with Trevor...I'm just mom. I tried teaching, he just refused to listen to the school stuff. Just because I was a teacher does not mean I know anything and heaven forbid I try to teach him something! He loves his teacher and listens to every word she says (at least he's listening to somebody!).
Cambria has grown at least 2 feet in the last couple months (okay maybe not that much) but she is suddenly skinny and tall. Whoever would have thought that of my cute, round, squishy little baby. She loves playing with trains, cars, and animals. I've tried dolls but she's not really that interested. She's happy most of the time and just goes with the flow.
Ethan is....well, he's Ethan. Funny, busy, usually climbing on something, full of kisses and tons of cute-ness all rolled into one. He has started talking and his most frequent words are apple, ball, kitty, MINE (usually at the top of his lungs), car, Nana, Papa, mom, dad, and quack-quack (for duck). He keeps me laughing, Trevor yelling (because usually he is in his stuff) and Cambria tattleing on him for taking her stuff away from her.
Our most recent family night consisted of slimy pumpkin guts and seeds, with carving and Halloween songs. The pictures tell the story better than I could:

Trevor would not think of touching the stuff with his hands. This actually an improvement from last year...he refused to even be in the kitchen with us while we cleaned out the guts.

Ethan wouldn't have anything to do with the pumpkins or the slime...he just kept saying "Cheese" and then grinning at the camera every where I went.

Cambria dug right in...I didn't even have to ask. She loved it and cleaned out the entire pumpkin with her hands. Interesting that my boys won't touch the stuff and Cambria is in it up to her elbows. Hmmm....

Cheese anyone?

Tyler: (To Trevor) "Reach in with your hand and get it (pumpkin guts)".
Trevor: (In a whiney voice) "NO--EWW...I don't want to get slimy".

Now I think we are ready Halloween. (I'm so excited!)

Harvest

Over the last two weeks:
48 Quarts of peaches
30 Quarts of applesauce
14 Quarts of pears
14 pints of salsa (not pictured)
1 messy kitchen
3 dirty children
{sigh}

Go me.

New Beginnings

It's hard to believe that this summer is almost over and that Trevor will be starting school in a week and a half. Yes, he did preschool but going to kindergarten is different...probably because I was there and I remember oh so well the good and the not so good from a teacher's perspective. They are such babies when they first begin and then almost like magic they grow-up so fast and before you can blink they are ready for first grade (okay, I'm exaggerating but it sure feels like it's that fast!). I'm not really that impressed with the school that he's attending so I don't have high hopes for any spectacular learning but maybe I'll be surprised. My job is to watch and listen and then watch some more and then fill in the gaps that are sure to happen. My hope for him is to feel successful and be challenged and then meet those challenges with the "good choice". He's a good kid and knows right from wrong but we will see how good he is at doing what he's been taught. So, with Trevor starting school, we are all entering into a new phase of life.

Another new beginning for us is that I'm doing child care (gulp!) for a friend of mine who teaches school. The child care they had lined up for this year fell through at the last minute and needed help. They have two adorable kids (the oldest is 4 and the youngest is 10 months) and the money will come in very handy as Christmas approaches. :) The nice thing, though, is that my friend will be going to half-time in December and then I will only be doing child care two, sometimes three days a week. And, I get to do fun preschool stuff with the two little girls! I might be crazy but I'm looking forward to this and other new experiences that come our way this fall!

Summer Fun

Can it already be the middle of August?! We have had the craziest summer ever, but it has been the most exciting! I really could go on and on with details of what we've been up to but I will spare you all a novel. Instead, here is a condensed version of our summer so far...


Trevor and Cambria enjoy playing in the sprinklers with the neighbor kids to beat the heat (we got up to 107 the end of July).


We all took a trip to Medford to visit the Thompson family and G & G Allen (this is Great-Grandma Allen).

While in Medford, we visited a kids museum and had a picnic right inside.

Trevor loved playing a life-sized game of chess! The favorite thing of the whole trip was swimming in Grandma Kirsten's pool.

We went crabbing for the first time in Newport and caught 5 crabs. They weren't very big, but Tyler and Trevor enjoyed eating them. We actually caught 2 star fish too, but decided it would be better to throw them back into the sea than to eat them.

Trevor had swimming lessons for the first time in July and learned to go all the way under water and to blow bubbles and kick at the same time. (This is great progress for a kid who was scared to put his face in the water before swim lessons).

We went on a camp-out with all Domans that live in Oregon. We camped in Yurts (pictured above) and I recommend that for any family with small children. There was a heater (!) and a light switch and we slept on bunk-beds.

Ethan enjoyed eating the marshmellows...

and the dirt {sigh}.

Trevor helped dad fix-up the dune-buggy for his Priest/Teacher super activity and then enjoyed lots of rides out on the Doman farm.

At the ward camp-out, Trevor learned how to fence and mom learned how to camp with little kids. Luckily Nana took care of Ethan at home so we all enjoyed a pretty good night's sleep.

We've had lots of activities and lots of fun!

The Oregon Coast with Cousins!

Today was an exciting day for us all in the Doman household. Tyler had the day off and Toren (Tyler's brother), Cindy and their kids are here visiting from Utah, so we all decided to go to the beach.
The day started off a little strange...we couldn't find our cat but could hear her meowing as we were packing the car. I finally found her inside the fridge out in our garage! Someone (named Trevor) finally confessed (after much prodding) to putting her in there and then forgetting about her. We had a long talk first, about being honest and then what is okay to do with the cat and what is not. She was not hurt and appears to be fine but was very happy to see us...good thing cats have lots of fur!
It took us awhile to get to the coast (imagine that with six kids under the age of six) but when we finally did get there we were lucky enough to have pretty good weather. It didn't rain, the wind was very calm, and it was overcast but not too cold. The kids all loved the sand (except Lily who doesn't really like to be dirty) and enjoyed getting completely covered in it. The highlights include:
- Trevor finding parts of a crab and digging until he found water
- Ethan falling head first into one of the holes Trevor dug
- Cambria getting sand in her mouth and trying to get it off her tonge with fingers covered in sand; it was a vicious cycle of getting more and more sand in her mouth and then crying about it.
- Running away from the waves as they came up on shore but never quite making it and getting very wet...

Cambria licking my sweatshirt to get the sand off of her tonge. An inventive way to get rid of that sand!

Trevor's crab leg...he was a little grossed out.

Ethan still smiling after going head first into one of Trevor's holes.

All of us playing wave tag.

A Life Changing Experience

I did it and it was so much better than I could have imagined! I actually finished the Helvetia 1/2 marathon (13. 1 miles) in Hillsboro and it was so awesome! (This is huge for me...someone who hates to run). I totally want to do it again next year...though I think I might let my sore body recover first. I was so nervous the day and morning before and I kept wanting to back out thinking "what's the big deal? I can run 13 miles here and still have reached my goal." I'm so glad I had the guts to stick it out and go anyway...it was so much fun and I've never had a better run. The weather was perfect, it was great to run with family (Kelly, Kirsten, Anna, and Eric) and the scenery was beautiful. There were about 4 thousand participants and I was pretty much intimidated. However, the fact that Kelly and Eric (my uncle and cousin) have done many full marathons and knew what they were doing made me feel like I could do this and the fact that I've been training since January gave me the confidence to see what the big deal was. The funny thing is that I swore I would never do anything like this... I have never been a runner and never had any interest in this kind of thing. Well, now I think I'm hooked. I still don't really want to do a full marathon but any 1/2 marathon...bring it on! The icing on my cake for that day was getting to the finish line and having my husband and kids there cheering me on...what a rush! I'm so glad I had the courage to get to the starting line; honestly that was the hardest part. It was an unforgettable experience. Thanks Kirsten for being a great running partner and for not letting me back out! We rock!:)

Trevor's Big #5

This day has finally arrived and Trevor couldn't be happier. Since the day after his birthday LAST year he has been looking forward to this day. He woke up at 6:30 this morning with a big grin on his face and asked, "Mom, am I 5 now? and can we go to Chuck E Cheese yet?". Then we had tears because he had to wait until 4:30 this afternoon for his party. Waiting any amount of time to a 5 year old is an eternity! He has been holding up all five fingers all day and grinning to himself and then saying, "Hey I'm 5 now". We decided to invite all of his friends in the neighborhood to a Chuck E Cheese Bday party and I have heard about it all day long. I've never seen them all so excited about something (honestly they drove me crazy about it and Trevor was the worst of them all). When 4:30 FINALLY arrived we couldn't get there fast enough and then it was a blur until we left at 7:15. They informed me that they had fun and the party was a success. Oh, and BTW, he is now old enough to go to kindergarten (He's been telling everyone he sees).

The very cool Batman cake Trevor picked out that I DID NOT make! Everyone had a blue mouth when they were finished.

Classic ChuckE picture. What a cute face!

Cambria would not get off this Bob the Builder ride for about half an hour...it's a good thing no one else wanted a turn and I had endless tokens!

Ethan's first experience with Chuck E Cheese...he loved it! He wanted to touch the noses of all the cartoon figures and loved dancing in the studio with the loud music.

According to Trevor there are never too many presents, and he's not too shy to tell you that!

Happy Birthday Trevor...we love you!

Moments

For the last couple of days I have had some random moments of gratitude. I don't know where these moments came from but it started me thinking of the many blessings I enjoy but often just take for granted. For example, I was vacuuming yesterday and found myself feeling thankful (don't laugh) for my thumbs. There are so many things I do everyday that would be so difficult without the use of thumbs and I really was thankful to have all my digits! Then, a little while later Tyler and I were having a conversation about someone we know who has diabetes and all the struggles he's going through and I realized I've never had any real health problems. I don't get sick often, and I only go to the hospital to have a baby (and no, I'm NOT pregnant). The other "moment" I had was watching my kids play together and laugh, and knowing that that sound was one of the sweetest I've ever heard. I really have to appreciate that now because when they are older it will be sounds of fighting and arguing (I remember so well the fights I had with my siblings). So for now, I am so thankful for the small seemingly insignificant blessings that surround me every day.

We're making progress!

I don't know if you all remember last September when I posted that we were/are doing a sprinkler system in our yard and I had all those fun pictures of dirt and weeds. Anyway, Tyler was able to finish the front yard {finally} and we laid our "insta-grass"! He had no idea this whole sprinkler system was going to be so much work (and money) but our front yard is finally presentable. I still have to plant bushes and flowers, but those are just some minor details that we'll take care of soon. Here are some pictures of this monumental task.







We owe a huge thank-you to Tim, Earl, and TJ for all the help...Tyler wouldn't have finished and the sod would have died without them! I love our velvet green grass, and it's so nice to just have the sprinklers come on when they are supposed to. I have such a wonderful husband to do this for me!

It's about time!

Ethan is officially a walker! He's almost 15 months old, has only 1 tooth that broke through last week and is now walking. Not that I'm excited about this...he is a very busy boy and now I have to know where he is at all times or trouble will surely follow. So far we've had cat food everywhere, toilet paper unrolled multiple times, and splashing in the toilet (and he's only been walking for a few days!).
I look at other babies and wonder if Ethan really was that little such a short time ago. Then I remember the sleep deprived nights and the long days that followed and I remember. Yep, he was that little, and as every mother can testify with their own children, he grew up way too fast. He has grown into a very solid, thick, healthy Doman kid with a personality that wins over every person he looks at. He loves to play with the big kids, when they let him, and is the biggest mama's boy I've ever seen. We are so lucky to have him as part of our family!

Zoo Trip

Trevor's preschool class had a field trip to the Portland Zoo today and I was lucky enough to tag along. He was so excited to ride a real school bus that he could hardly sleep last night. I was a little worried about getting into an accident because all the kids are so little and buses usually don't have seat belts, or so I thought. Things have changed a bit since I was in school...the bus had harness strap car seats built right into the seat! I was pretty impressed. I couldn't help but think what it would be like to have high school kids be required to wear seat belts like that...would they be less obnoxious? Anyway, back to the zoo...we had a great time, saw lots of animals big and small, and literally ran from one exhibit to the next (that's the way Trevor likes to do the zoo). My only complaint was that there were no lions or tigers. However, they are building a new exhibit that will most likely include both of those when it's finished.

Notice the giraffe behind Trevor...he was amazed at how tall that giraffe really was and kept telling me that all day long.

This mama and baby elephant was my favorite of the zoo. They were so cute together and all the kids got a kick out of it.
So now, after being in the hot sun all day with 3 & 4 year olds, watching Austin's Tee-ball game, and going for a five mile run I'm a bit tired and think it's time for bed!

All Things Bright and Beautiful

I think that Western Oregon is one of the most beautiful places on this earth and on days when it's NOT raining I feel very blessed that we have the opportunity to live here. Right now is the best time to enjoy the beauty of it because everything is in bloom (including my allergies). Sometimes I feel like some of the plants grow a foot overnight (literally) and suddenly, if we're not paying attention, our backyard becomes a jungle of flora and fauna.
A little bit ago Rachael was home from college for only a few days (sniff, sniff) and we all loaded up in my parents beast (the Suburban) and headed out to the Woodburn Tulip Farm. Every time I go there I'm amazed at the beauty of the acres and acres of brightly colored tulips that go on as far as the eye can see. A breathtaking sight. Here are a few of our pictures:

Cambria and Trevor got to ride the Cow train; me and Cambria were the Caboose.


Trevor and Rachael getting ready for their cow train ride.


Ethan posing in a wooden shoe.


Cambria: "Do I have to sit in this, really?"


They had some really old tractors there for the kids to climb on, so of course that was the only place Trevor wanted to be.


Me and Rachael trying NOT to fall into the flowers.


So sad that Dad had to work that day...maybe he can come next year.



AWww...Two little cuties!


Ethan telling us he's ready to go home for a nap!