Family Update - October 2013

Jaycie is now 14 months old. She is so much fun but so much work. We have to watch her all the time otherwise she's playing in the bathtub (turning off and on the water) or climbing everything in sight. We often find her climbing onto the table to "share" Maddie and Katie's food, or on top of the television stand so she can touch the TV. She really loves to throw things away in the garbage can and enjoys watching me cook. She has to be on the counter when doing hair, not just hers but everyones, and likes to brush her teeth. She is extremely independent and likes to play in the basement playroom just like the other two girls.

Katie is loving Dance Class right now. Her teacher, Miss Sara, says she's impressed with how well Katie is doing at remembering what the different dance moves are. She really loves to dance and can't wait to show us what she learned at Dance, every day. She still loves the color pink and has recently become attatched to a stuffed Watermelon (strange, I know) but she really loves it, almost as much as her baby whom she has named 'baby Katie'. She loves preschool and is working on learning to write her letters. She's proud of the fact that she can almost write her name. She has the K, A, and E down. I don't think it will take to long to learn the I & E.

Maddie loves Preschool. She is well behaved and absorbs so much of what her teachers tell her. She really likes to draw and color so art is high on her list of favorite activities. She has taken an interest in the computer and likes to play games. She has asked for a skooter, a bike, and an IPAD for her birthday and Christmas. Not sure what Santa plans to do yet, we shall see. She weighs about 3 lbs less then Katie does, coming in at 28 lbs. We're trying to feed her things we know she likes to help get her to gain weight, it's a constant concern for us especially since she eats more than most kids her age. She struggles with breakfast but the other meals she has no problem finishing. We're hoping to avoid a lecture at her 4 year appointment but only time will tell.

Josh has finished up a couple of jobs he was doing for his sister. He re-finished a portion of her front yard, painted her house, and built shelves in her basement. He's been trying really hard to make some extra money so we can get in a better financial possistion. It's been a struggle since he got promoted because although he makes more money it's closer to a salary job than before and we lost about $15000.00 a year. It will be great for his future but right now it's tight and we're needing to find ways to supplement until things settle down and work out. He's still working with the young men in scouting and helping neighbors and ward members with their projects. He's a generous man and I'm lucky to have him.

I, Amber, am not doing much work with my Mary Kay Directors. One of the women I was working for turned out to be extremely dishonest and isn't paying me. I find it frustrating and I'm at a loss as to what can be done about it. I guess I just pray and hope things work out in the end. I'm looking for things I can do from home and there aren't a lot of options, so really I'm just trying hard to budget well and not spend any unnecessary money. It sucks but I'm learning to be even more frugal that I was before. We are slowly working on finishing the basement with some supplies we already have on hand as well as using some Home Depot Gift Cards we've recieved. Hopefully we will be able to finish with our tax return; but, like everything else, only time will tell.