27

I've had this blog for over four years now. I started it when Kyle, London, and I moved to Amman, Jordan, because I wanted our families and close friends to know what we were up to on the other side of the world. And then, when we came home, I found that I enjoyed writing it so much that I wanted to keep going. I never imagined I would still be writing it today, but when I go back and read the posts, the memories make me SO COMPLETELY happy that I can't imagine ever stopping. That being said, I feel like for my birthday this year, instead of lumping it in with my Christmas post like I always do, I want to write a little bit about myself. Because the reality is, this blog is no longer just followed by family and close friends, and---for some reason, I keep feeling like I want its readers to get a better sense of the person behind the computer screen, on my 27th birthday.

Where to begin? How did I get here? I'm not your typical 27 year old, and that's okay with me. When I was growing up, there were two things I knew I wanted in life. First, I wanted to be an author. I zipped my way through college because there were no wasted classes, no changing of majors, no questions about who I was or what I wanted from school. Second, I wanted to mother a whole lot of children. I got married really young, which definitely isn't for everyone, but worked out wonderfully for me. We started having kids almost right away, and I seriously found my calling in life. Mothering is my JAM. I love the nearly impossible challenge of it. I love organizing the chaos. I love how much I am changing because of my kids. I love playing with them, reading them stories, teaching them new things, and kissing their beautiful faces a million times a day. Motherhood brings a kind of joy to my life that completely consumes me. Was I expecting the debilitating exhaustion? NOPE. I'm hoping to sleep again in ten years or so. In conclusion, don't be super surprised when I'm pregnant again someday, because if you've met my kids, you'd want more of them, too. You heard it from me first.*

London brought me breakfast in bed on my birthday! She climbed directly over Kyle.

*Kyle wants everyone to know that I am NOT pregnant.

Love. I love love. I am the sappiest person I know. The super cheesy almost sickeningly silly love stories make my heart skip a beat. I'm not ashamed. Give me all the books, movies, and TV shows about romance. Speaking of books, I'm an avid reader. I can get lost in a book and read until 3 am without even realizing it. I enjoy all genres of books: historical fiction, biographies, dystopian, romance, self-help, religious...

My faith is everything to me. I'm a Mormon- which is basically a fancy way of saying--I'm a Christian who believes that God still talks to people today. The best thing about being a Mormon? Definitely our belief in eternal families. We believe that families continue even after death, which means our children, our parents, our grandparents, will always be ours. It's why Mormon funerals are joyous, warm, and peaceful. The second best thing? Probably callings. A "calling" is a job at church: every single person has a job, and no one, not even the Bishop, gets paid. My job right now is teaching the 14 year old girls, and it is one of my favorite callings I've ever had! My faith in Jesus Christ helps me conquer and endure all of the challenges that come my way. I feel purpose and direction and light in my life.

I have a really really loud, super distinct laugh. I used to be embarrassed by it, but not anymore. It's me!

I am a people person. I love the story behind each new face, and I love finding goodness and commonality in everyone I meet. My love for people draws me to travel. When I go somewhere new, I want to immerse myself in the culture, the customs, the food, the museums, the art, the History---everything fascinates me. I'll live all over the world someday, I'm sure of it!

There is a bond between me and my siblings that is unlike any I have seen. I'm sure it stems from our tumultuous childhood, when we leaned on each other and protected each other from the challenges we faced as a family. We are a team, and we love each other endlessly.

I have a completely irrational fear of large bugs. And although I'm humiliated to admit it, I have a real phobia of cleaning toilets. I am capable of bleaching the outside and wiping it off, barely, and the rest is up to Kyle.

I love love love the outdoors.

The twins at my birthday dinner.

I truly enjoy music of every kind. I grew up performing in Musical Theater, and I still get goosebumps whenever I see a play. Thankfully, I married a talented musician. When Kyle sits down at the piano and especially when he plays his acoustic guitar for me, I melt into a puddle on the ground. Sometimes, I think it's an unfair advantage, but mostly, I'm just really glad he's MINE.

I'm a perfectionist. I have never met a challenge and thought, "Huh, not sure if I can pull that off." It can get me into serious trouble sometimes, because I really shouldn't do some of the things I have already decided I can do. I get these ideas, I start planning, I figure out every tiny detail, and I can't stop myself. Which leads me to my greatest flaw...

Time. I don't get it. I can't do it. I fail miserably. I am never, and I mean never, on time. After 27 years of it, and being psycho-analyzed by the poor people I torture with my lateness, I have come up with a theory: I do not know how long anything actually takes. It has nothing to do with me being selfish and narcissistic, and everything to do with a loose screw in my brain that thinks every task I accomplish will take just a minute. I'm genuinely sorry and I will never stop trying to fix this crazy flaw.

Health is really important to me. I have never tasted alcohol or smoked anything, and I don't drink soda. I make all my family's meals from scratch and only snack on fruits and vegetables. But...I love Haribo gummy bears and expensive good chocolate, and I believe in treating myself when I want to! I exercise daily, and I always have. My body is not perfect, but it is healthy, and I don't take that
blessing for granted.

Finally, I love writing this blog. So thank you for reading and laughing along with me. I can't wait to see where the next four years take the Garvin Family...

It's magic

Tara and I grew up together. We spent summers sleeping on her trampoline or her driveway, went to summer camp, kissed boys, spent three hours getting each other ready to go to the movies, and laughed our way through adolescence, while Dashboard Confessional played in the background. AND, much to our dismay, it had been three entire years since we had last been together. I planned to fly to Connecticut, where her husband is in school, but then news that her husband might have an opportunity to work in a clinic in Utah over the holidays changed everything. Instead of a cross-country flight for me, a twelve hour drive for me and Kyle and our four littles was arranged. 

We stayed with my mom's sister, whom my children love to death. She gave them candy, had an entire box of play-dough on the kitchen counter at all times, and played pretend with them fervently. And for three days, Tara and I talked endlessly, while Henry tried his best to demolish everything in sight. There is something so special about a friendship like that...one that took a lifetime to create, and one that will never ever change. It was my greatest pleasure to spend a few days in Utah with her. And how adorable is her baby girl?! 

Temple Square in Salt Lake City...

We returned home to San Diego just in time for Christmas.
I used to look hopefully under the tree on Christmas morning, wishing that all the things I asked for were waiting for me to unwrap. But now, the only thing I care about at all is the look on the faces of four little children who believe in magic.

Annual sibling picture...

Here are a few of the gems I wrote down from that magical morning...

Elle, opening up a pair of Paw Patrol pajamas, "Mom, look at all these characters! These are SO adorable! I can't WAIT to wear these!"

Elle, opening up her "real horse", a Furreal walking pony, "WHAT IN THE WORLD IS GOING ON?! EEEEEEEE!"

London, opening her flying unicorn, "Mom, Santa found it! I can't believe he found it! This is exactly what I wanted!" ----Yeah, London, Santa deserves an award for that one. London was so happy that she didn't realize that the flying unicorn did not possess the ability to also grant her unlimited wishes.

Henry walked around the entire day holding a basketball, and shooting baskets with Kyle in his new mini hoop. It became his favorite word. "Ba-ball! Ba-ball!" And Juliette sat in her new doll stroller while all of her siblings, including Henry, pushed her in circles downstairs. 

I can easily say that this Christmas was the best day I can remember. I felt so overwhelmed with love for my family and gratitude to God for giving them to me. I am so proud of my kids- for the brilliant, kind, good little people they are. And when I look at these sweetest smiling faces, I think-- There is no greater love than what I feel for them! But it's Christmas, so these thoughts lead me right to where they should; to my Savior.

Garvin Gobble 2016

I'm convinced that I have the best nieces and nephews on this earth. My kids are so lucky to call these little people their cousins! For five days this Thanksgiving, it was non-stop cousin mayhem in San Francisco. 

We left the Tuesday before Thanksgiving and headed up the California coast. Thanks to L.A. traffic, it turned into a twelve hour drive, which might have (and really should have)killed me, if not for a sweet little system I've nearly perfected over the years. I'll fill you in on the inside scoop... 

1) Movies

We go to the library and pick out a stack of new movies the kids have never seen before. Every time the kids start to get restless or irritated, I say, "Okay! Who wants to watch a NEW MOVIE!?" 

-cheering, variations of "you're the best mom ever", "I'm so happy we're driving in this car", etc. It's magic.

2) Snacks

I pack all of our food in an ice chest, in the half sandwich sized ziplock bags. I pack crackers, carrots, cucumbers, bell peppers, grapes, craisins, little sandwiches--with a serving in each. SO when my kids tell me, "Mom, I'm STARVING", I throw a little baggie at them. They think our game of catch is hilarious, especially when the food hits them in the face. Everyone has their own sippy cup of water.

3) Breaks

We try to take our potty breaks somewhere family friendly, like a rest stop. I let the kids get out of their car seats to run around on the grass while everyone takes turns in the bathroom. If potty breaks coincide with gas stops, I let the kids go crazy and climb all over inside the car instead. 

4) Toys

My kids are all still little, so we are pretty limited on activities to do together in the car. For now, I let the kids pick two toys and a coloring book each. This keeps our car relatively clutter-free, because everything they need fits in the little cubbies next to each car seat.

The fact that I have zero pictures of our actual Thanksgiving feast is kind of lame! I was clearly just a teeny bit busy that day. I've said it before and I'll say it again- cooking and baking with aunts, moms, sisters, nieces for an entire day is just about the best thing I can imagine doing. On a side note, this year I discovered a new-found confidence in my baking, and it was wonderful!

My favorite outing during the Thanksgiving holiday was our trip to Muir Woods. It reminded me of beautiful Maple Valley! We took all the kids on a little 5 mile loop through the forest. Kyle and I each wore a twin, and Elle was passed back and forth from uncle to uncle because she was "too tired" to keep walking. At one point, Uncle Mark had his daughter, Millie, on his shoulders and Elle riding piggy-back! All the other kids were real troopers, braving the cold and the mud, while pointing out every giant banana slug along the trail. It was such a beautiful and peaceful morning.

All the kids slept in sleeping bags in the playroom!

 Another highlight of the trip was the first-annual Garvin Bocce Ball tournament. Aunt Kay and Uncle Tom play a game called Bocce Ball, where a pallino ball is thrown down a court, and each team tries to throw their bocce balls closest to it. One point is given for each bocce ball that is closer than the opposing team's bocce ball. Kimball even had this state-of-the-art trophy sculpted from real plastic for the winning team. The adults really enjoyed themselves, and we all agreed that it should become a family tradition.

Kyle is a natural.

The twins were pretty hard this trip. I'm hoping it's just their age right now, but the twins were so overwhelmed by all the "new" faces and places and didn't want to do anything but hold on to me for dear life. Sweet cousin Kayla tried to be so helpful all week, and this is pretty much the "thank you" Juliette gave her in return. 

I love our Garvin family. I love how there are so. many. small. children. I love the inside jokes, the incessant teasing, the jovial storytelling. I love the childhood memories shared and the sports references in every conversation. I love how everyone is genuinely kind and helpful, that we share the same faith and teach our children the same values. And I love that we shared Thanksgiving together this year!