Eye spy

Can you guess whose eyes are whose?

A:
B:
C:
D:
E:
Give up?

Here are some hints...
-Talea's eye color is very similar to mine. We both have blue eyes. Talea has yellow around the outside, and I have yellow around the pupil, so both of our eyes have a blue-green hue.
-Hyatt's eyes have Hyrum's slant.
-Kiersa and Hyatt have pure blue eyes, with Kiersa's being the darker of the two.

Updates

So, I thought I'd throw in a few updates.

This is Karen's dog, Arrow, when she was a puppy. She was one of the puppies from Scout's 1st litter and we sold her to Karen, my sister-in-law.

I told of how Arrow was bit by a rattlesnake a while ago and that it didn't look good for her. She didn't die from the rattlesnake bite though. Amazing, considering she's only about 4 pounds. (Arrow was one of our puppies from Scout's first litter.) She did get lost though, but was seen by someone hit on the side of the road, never to be seen again. It was very sad, yet ironic that she should end with the same fate as her mother. Scout was hit by a car right in front of my eyes last September, and is now buried on my parents' property. I never thought it would be so hard to lose a beloved pet. This picture is of Scout, but Arrow looked just like her, except with uncut ears.


A guy in our ward always walks his dogs by biking along with them and they pull him with the leash. He rarely has to even pedal! He lives down the road from us, so we see him frequently. He has a Pitbull and an Akita. He warns my kids not to trust the Akita, but that the Pitbull is safe. He says his Pitbull is loving and absolutely harmless and has never done anything bad and can always be trusted. (Sounds like Maren's Pitbull.) The Akita on the other hand, makes them nervous around strangers and children, so the kids can only pet the Pitbull. Well, the other day he was walking his Akita (bike style) and he stopped to chat with Hyrum. The Akita's face was all torn up. Hyrum asked what happened, and apparently the wonderful, innocent Pitbull got a wild hair one day and tore up the Akita's face. So much for trusting it so completely! That's what scares me when people tell me their dog (that is a breed of notorious aggression) is friendly and wouldn't harm a fly. My dogs sometimes fight, but neither of them ever comes out with a scratch. It's a good thing that family's kids are grown and it was the Akita who got it, not a person. I don't like my kids to pet that Pitbull now, because who knows if it will get ticked at them for something.

So, Little, our cat, had 6 kittens on the 31st of July, but 2 died within the first couple of days. I'm not sure if they just didn't get enough to eat, if they were cold, or if they were played with too much (Tilly kept sneeking in to them), but Little moved them into a box high on a shelf, so we let her keep them there. The 4 remaining ones are doing well.

One more person is pregnant in March!! It's unbelievable how many babies are due from Jan to April, with most being in Feb and March. I told you I'm contagious, and she got it from only reading my blog, or so the rumor is. I can't say her name though because she's another person keeping the cat in the bag for a while.

Sing song Tilly

Talea is a very musical child.

If I don't listen to her when she's asking me something, she'll repeat the question in song. She almost always uses the same tune, no matter what she's asking. It's the tune to "Where is Thumpkin", which is the same as "Are you sleeping? Are you sleeping? Brother John?", or she'll sing it to "I'm a Child of God." So she'll say "Mom, can I do fingerpaints? (short pause) Mom, can I do fingerpaints?" (even shorter pause) Then, if I haven't responded, she'll sing (remember to sing the Are you sleeping tune as you read this) "Mo-o-o-m, Mo-o-o-m, can I do...fin-ger-paints? Ca-an I-I do-o, fi-in-ger-er pai-aints, can I do, fin-ger-paints?" Hyatt has now caught on to this tactic and has begun to adapt it into his questioning also.

She finds it extremely difficult to remain quiet in the car if she's awake. I think it's literally impossible for her. If she's quiet, you know she's asleep before you even look at her. She's always either talking or singing, but usually singing (you know this, Nana, from your road trip with us last October).

Talea doesn't like to have you correct the lyrics to the songs she's singing. Well, she'll let you correct her a couple of times, but doesn't appreciate it if you start singing the song the correct way. I think she feels like she's being outdone (she wouldn't be competitive or anything, would she?). She would rather stop singing altogether (for about 5 minutes usually before she can't resist singing again) than have to be told the proper lyrics all the time. We can't help it though. When she sings "Book of Morning Stories" we feel that if she doesn't learn the correct word, she'll go around telling people her religion is "Morning." We let a lot of stuff slide, but sometimes we just can't keep quiet. Sorry, Tilly!

When Talea watches movies (have I already blogged about this one?), she gets very emotionally tied to what's happening in the movie. When we watched Wall-E and Spiderwick Chronicles (those two in particular), she really displayed this new habit. If she feels scared, or feels really bad or frightened for the characters, she will start getting antsy, bounce around in her seat saying "Aah, aah, aah!", then she'll duck, and look back at it, and then when it's just too much for her, she goes into her own little safe world of happiness by belting out music, though it's never a particular song, it's more of an "Ah la la la la la" type of singing just to drown out her fear or intense compassion. It's pretty funny, although embarrassing and rude when we're in a theatre with other people. I wish I could catch it on film sometime.

Videos!

I don't love that videos won't print when I turn this into a book, but they're fun to look at for now anyway. I finally gave in and figured out how to download my videos on YouTube. I'm not thrilled about having my kids videos on YouTube, but I don't know how to get them to properly download and process otherwise. Since it works this way, this is how I'll have to do it. I'm going to post all the videos that wouldn't work when I tried to download them previously.

Here's the video of Kiersa shuddering while eating peas. I was holding the camera while trying to feed her, which proved to be a little difficult.


Here's the video of Kiersa cruising in her walker. This isn't the best video for showing how she takes actual steps instead of scooting, but I noticed in the other videos I accidentally caught Hyrum only half-dressed in the background, and decided to keep those to myself.


Here's the video of Hyatt doing the euro bungy. I didn't want to leave him out since I posted Tilly's video (though it was sideways).

Don't pass the peas!

I have to say that this expression is a perfect example of Kiersa's shock and horror when I try to feed her solid food. The wide eyes are priceless.

Kiersa isn't fond of solid food yet. She shutters at everything we offer her, whether its peaches, rice cereal, peas, applesauce or bananas. She wants what you're eating, and will gladly gum your applecore or taste bits of whatever you're eating, but if it's pureed, she won't have it! What I don't understand is how Kiersa can tolerate the vile taste of formula, yet can't stomach peaches. Have you ever tasted formula before? I got some on my finger once, so I tasted it, and though it was just a drop, I about gagged! It tastes just like iron! How does she eat breastmilk (which, though I haven't tasted it since my infancy, is reputed to taste quite nice and sweet), and then a little while later guzzle a bottle of formula? It's beyond my comprehension how her tastebuds function the way they do.

Kiersa is getting really mobile now. She doesn't crawl or roll for transportation, but since she hates lying down, we put her in her walker and she discovered about a week or two ago how to make it move forward. When we first put her in, her feet didn't touch the ground. When they finally touched, she'd move backward by pushing off the ground. Now that she can touch even better, she learned how to move it forward and actually walks with steps to wherever she wants to go. She'll do corners and she'll turn it around completely. It ticks her off when she gets stuck in doorways though.

I have really great videos of her walking in the walker and shuttering while eating, but for some reason the upload process will NEVER complete, so I can't show you them. Sorry. You're seriously missing out!

I'm contagious!

I seem to have a condition that I've recently discovered is contagious. Yikes! The condition is called pregnancy. If you read my blog, touch me, or talk to me, I will highly increase your chances of conception, so beware! I know of 6 people who are now pregnant that became pregnant shortly after my announcement that I AM pregnant. One of the women has fertility problems and has 2 children (the last of which was conceived with the assistance of clomid), but she has been unsuccessful at conceiving again since that child. Clomid stopped working for her. When she came into Hyrum's shop last month sometime (I think) to have her kitchen designed, she found out how many kids I have and that I'm pregnant again, and she came over to me and said "Can I rub against you in hopes of your fertility rubbing off on me? I have 2 children, and I know I have 2 more inside I'm supposed to have, but I can't get pregnant and fertility's not helping!" I agreed as I laughed at it all, and she leaned against my side and rubbed her shoulder to mine. Low and behold, we went to their house yesterday for some final measuring and such before the kitchen is ordered, and she said she was pregnant!! I am now convinced, because of her and the many other girls who are suddenly pregnant and due shortly after me, that I must be contagious! Look out!

This picture is from 11 days before Kiersa's delivery. I'm not quite this big yet with this pregnancy, thank goodness, considering I'm only about 11 weeks (out of 40) along.

Stinking training wheels

Talea got a bike for Christmas and we left the training wheels on (that came on it) since the weather wasn't great for bike riding and she could ride it around inside the house with them still on (this was when we were in our big house before the remodel began). Last week we took her to the track to teach her how to ride without the training wheels, and though she was all enthusiasm before we arrived, she wasn't as thrilled after her attempts were made. At first, Tilly and Hyatt ran around the track while Hyrum brought out the bikes,


then Hyatt rode his trike around the whole track (it took him forever!),

Kiersa hung out on a blanket,

and Talea tried her hand at real bike riding. Talea has great balance while walking on walls and things, but not so great on a bike yet.

Hyrum ran along with her at first,



then I attempted it,

then Weston did.

Eventually, she opted to let Hyatt ride it while she rode his trike,
and then begged for the training wheels to be put back on so she could ride around the track.
Hyatt tried his hand at photography (you have to realize my camera is a huge SLR so it's difficult for them to hold, find their intended object through the eye-hole, and then push the button. Talea's gotten really good at it, but Hyatt's just learning.


She was much improved by the time it started to get dark and we headed home,

but she still is a slave to the training wheels. I've taught several siblings how to ride a bike, but they never started with training wheels, and I believe it makes it a lot harder for a child to learn to ride a bike when they've relied on the safety of training wheels. Hyatt has started riding Tilly's bike with the training wheels on, but I think I'll take them off and make the kids go without.

ABC Tag...

A. Attached or single: Attached
B. Best friend: Most definitely Hyrum. Everyone else pales in comparison.
C. Cake or Pie: I'm a sucker for cake, although I adore cheesecake, and it seems more like a pie to me.
D. Day of the week: "Saturday is a special day, it's the day we" do stuff as a family.
E. Essential items: Tide detergent (I tried an eco brand and paid the price), Dawn dish soap (nothing else seems so effective), cotton knit shirts, loungy pants (sweats, yoga pants, etc), puffs plus tissues, burt's bees baby bee buttermilk lotion, etc. Just check out this essentials list for great products I, and the rest of the Cluffs, swear by. Cluff Favorites
F. Favorite color: blue-green (like the color of the Smith River in the Redwoods)
G. Gummy bears or worms: Bears, easier to eat.
H. Hometown: Ashland, Oregon
I. Indulgence: A date night involving only Hyrum and me. We rarely get the luxury of a babysitter, so couple dates are few and far between.
J. January or July: July because of camping, though I'm not a hot weather person anymore.
K. Kids: 3 (2 girls and a boy) with a 4th arriving in February.
L. Life isn't complete without: Hyrum and my kids with me.
M. Marriage date: December 30, 2000
N. Number of brothers & sisters: 5 brothers, 4 sisters (I'm the 6th of 10)
O. Oranges or apples: Apples, when they're crispy, cold and juicy.
P. Phobias or fears: I am terrified of the dark.
Q. Quote: "Nothings too tough for a Cluff!"
R. Reasons to smile: A completed project (rarely happens), watching my kids play together, and seeing Hyrum arrive home from work.
S. Superman or Wonderwoman: Superman. I grew up on him, but barely know who Wonderman is.
T. Tag 5 People: Goodness, I don't know. Whoever feels like doing this would be fun.
U. Unknown fact about me: I'm a rebel at heart, but too afraid of consequences to ever act on it. That fear has kept me good!
V. Vegetable: Any and all, especially ants-on-a-log (celery with peanut butter and raisins on top).
W. Worst habbit: Either procrastinating or being too judgemental.
X. X-ray or ultrasound: Well, x-rays are associate with pain, and ultrasounds are associated with joy, so I'll have to say ultrasound for sure.
Y. Your favorite food: Any dessert, or any food really, that Aunt Judy (George) makes.
Z. Zodiac sign: Cancer

Little

Our kitten Hyrum brought home last year is named Little. Tilly named it that since it was so little at the time. Well, Little's rather big now, and last night she became a mother. Aren't there any sterile cats out there that you don't have to neuter or spay?

Here's Little as a kitten playing with Talea.


Here's Little today as a brand new Mommy to 6 little ones. And no, we're not keeping them. We'll give them away when they're old enough.


Needless to say, Talea's in 7th heaven. I can't keep her away from them! Little is an outside cat, so last night we suspected she'd had her babies since she looked thinner and her tail looked a bit mangy, but she was still sort of plump so we ignored it until this morning and could tell for sure the event had indeed occurred. We had to watch her eat and drink then follow her in order to find her babies. She had them in a dark corner of my food storage room behind some boxes of empty canning tins. I had baby clothes out in the open all over waiting for lids to the containers, so I was really grateful she chose to have them on a plywood shelf rather that a box of comfy baby clothes. She's always been a sweet cat.

I felt bad for the babies being on a cold, hard shelf, and I was afraid that they'd fall off when they wandered around, so I made a comfy bed for them, and so far Little is keeping them there.

Fertile Spring

I am now aware of 8 pregnant friends or family members, and they're all due between late January and March, except one, which is October. It's amazing! There's me, my sister-in-laws (Teresa, Meghan and Tana), my cousin Dusty's wife (Emily), my cousins (Rachelle and one who hasn't made it public yet) and my friend (Kylene...the October baby). The lame thing is, not one of them live close to me, so even though my baby has 7 potential friends close to it's age, it will rarely ever see any of them. Such is life.