Whohash & Hogwash

A little Christmas

2012-01-12T10:51:00.000-08:00

I wanted to get Christmas, and Trent's swearing in, and Cameron's birthday up, but my computer isn't cooperating, so this is all we get for now. Cameron was so excited for Christmas he slept in his Santa hat!
Santa brought Tyson a skateboard!

Dad surprised everyone and got us a PS3 move! Mom's still not so sure about it.

Kaylee and Lucy checking out their stockings. Santa brought them matching ballerina jamies!More later!

Christmas Update 2011

2011-12-15T16:13:00.000-08:00

2011 has been an exciting year for us!

KAYLEE:

Turned four in August.

Got a frenectomy over the summer: she can talk now!

Still lives for her ballet class each week.

Can't get enough princesses or fairies or her friends and cousins.

CAMERON:

Will turn seven in January.

Has become a math whiz, asking about and understanding multiplication and division.

Still loves to just play and have adventures, and is all boy all the time.

Has become a great reader. Can't get enough Fly Guy and Magic Tree House.

TYSON:

Turned ten in November.

Loves to be with his friends or go to any kind of sporting event with Dad.

Has turned into a book lover! Always has to bring a book along.

Loves flag football, tennis, and basketball with his friends.

TRENT:

Call him Councilman! Elected to our City Council in November, which means no more HOA and no more planning commission.

Still loves to build and design beautiful furniture for his wife. Just finished a new hutch for our kitchen and has plans for built in cabinets in our loft/office (some day soon). Has been blessed with many side jobs, basements. He does beautiful work and we're so proud of him!

Still plugging away at Xactware, but now as the International Coordinator, so he's gotten to visit London and Amsterdam a few times this year.

AIMEE:

Loving being at home and watching the kids grow way too fast.

Freelance writing for local paper, just one or two articles a week covering a neighboring city.

Staying busy with Primary Presidency and feeling blessed to have such wonderful ladies to work with.

We have been blessed with the best family, friends, and neighbors, and are so grateful for the abundance of blessings we enjoy.

May you feel the real Reason for the Season in your life.

Love,

The Augustus'

Coucilman Augustus

2011-11-19T09:16:00.000-08:00

Trent is very civic minded. He has loved serving on our HOA board for the last three years. In college he served on the Utah Home Builders Asso. presidency, one year as treasurer, one as VP, and his last year as president. I guess I should have seen this coming.
While on the HOA board he spent a lot of time at city council meetings because our HOA is surrounded by the city golf course and our neighborhood gets a certain number or votes when issues surrounding the course came up.
A few months ago we found out that the only ones running for city council were people who lived outside of our neighborhood and who had made statements at council meetings that they would rather see the multi million dollar golf course go to weeds than spend another tax dollar on it. Yes, that would be great for property values in our neighborhood and our city....160+ acres of weeds. Good idea.
He waited until the day before the deadline and no one else (that he knew of) had signed up, so after many tears from me, he signed up to run for city council.
It soon became very clear where each of the 12 candidates stood. 3 people eventually had to drop out for various reasons, so the primary election came down to 9, 3 people who were running to serve in the city and protect our property values and increase commercial base, and 6 people who we found out later had met together, all running with the intent of getting rid of the golf course because they see it as a money pit.
By the time the first Meet the Candidates Night had rolled around, we'd been "visited" by two of the opposing candidates, who came over to scope Trent out. One of these individuals quickly identified himself as the ring leader for the other five. When he said jump, they asked how high. By the end this guy (who loves to tell others what a righteous priesthood holder he is) had pulled every dirty, nasty political trick ever invented. He told the only woman who made it through the Primary is would be better if her husband ran than her because he was a priesthood holder. He did the same thing two years ago to a women (who is a wonderful current member of the council) who isn't a member of the LDS church. Evidently, he disagrees with the Founding Fathers about whether we should had a religious test for our leaders.
After Trent made if through the Primary, this guy and his followers changed their tactics, flip flopping their positions on almost every issue because it was clearly hurting them in the polls. They lied, told half truths, and then accused Trent of having no integrity. Trent and two other candidates came into the election wanting to be fair minded, help to right the city's current economic woes concerning the golf course, and to serve our community. They meet together and made a promise that they wouldn't use negative campaigning and they would do what they could to help each other get on the council. By the day of the general election, it had become a 3 on 3 race. By the second Meet the Candidates, it had become obvious that the opposition hadn't really done their homework and didn't really have a plan at all. They distributed nasty flyers accusing Trent, G, and J of ridiculousness, while touting how much virtue and integrity they had. They ran an extremely negative campaign. Then some of Trent's supporters posted their own flyers and signs around the city that were negative toward the opposition. Trent, G, and J asked them to remove them, but they chose not to. It was all very nasty.
In the end, cooler heads prevailed. Amazingly, Trent, G, and J were all elected to the city council. We thought maybe two of them would get on and one of the opposition, but this was ideal! And the troublemaker got last in the polls. Couldn't have asked for a better result.
Immediately following the election results, the opposition demanded a recount, including do a CSI style investigation of their own of the ballot boxes and the counting rooms. Instead of removing their election signs, they posted over them, accusing the city of rigging the election. A few days ago the Lt. Governor's office rejected their request for a recount saying they hadn't even come close to proving impropriety.
This troublemaker will undoubtedly continue to be a huge thorn in the city's side. Five years ago, he and his puppets drove Smith's out of building a store here, and almost got Walmart to pull out too. They have cost the city thousands of dollars in various board of adjustment hearings and ridiculous initiatives. They push their agendas without considering the full consequences of their positions.
I am so proud of Trent, G, and J. They are fair minded, reasonable, and willing to work for the community, not for themselves. Trent will make a great councilman. He ran a positive and fair campaign. We are so appreciative of all those who supported him and helped us deliver flyers and post signs, and talked to their friends and neighbors about the issues. It's sad to see a negative few discourage others from participating in the city.
Our kids have had many great experiences learning about how our government works and why it is important to serve each other. They have learned about loving those who treat us badly. They really worked to help their dad in this election and have been his greatest supporters.
We are thrilled with the outcome and look forward to Trent serving with the other councilmembers and the city staff, good people all. So blessed to live in a city with reasonable and honest people...for the most part.

Halloween 2011

2011-11-14T20:16:00.000-08:00

This is my cutie niece, Miss Lucy. Love those tights. She loves to give the kids kisses (aka grabbing them by their cheeks and slobbering away). They love her kisses.Miss Kaylee was a purple princess, ala Rapunzel.

Cameron at the boy's school parade. His whole class had their arms folded. I think their teacher must have had a "come to Jesus" talk with them before they started the parade.

Tyson was all smiles.

Went to Gardner Village (it was packed!) with Grandma and Aunt Lissa and Lucy and Aunt Jen, who took lots of cute pictures of everyone. We love finding the witches hidden there every year.

Tron Guy Cameron, or as he calls himself: Sam Flynn!

After Tyson decided on being a Tron Guy for Halloween and Cam chimed in with the same thing, Tyson was a really great about having the same costume. He is such a good brother, and they have had a great time having light disc battles together.They had a great Halloween, lots of candy, excellent friends, and the weather was perfect for once!

Give oh Give Away....

2011-10-05T22:03:00.000-07:00

I saw this on my sis-in-law's blog and thought it sounded like a fun idea. If you would like to play along send me a comment.
Rules:1. I will make a little something for the first 3 people that comment on this post. It will be a surprise and may arrive at any time in the next 365 days (yes, a year).
2. To sign up to receive a gift from me you must play along too. Share the giving love on your blog by promising to send a handmade goodie to the first three people that comment on your blog post.
3. You must have a blog.
4. After commenting on my post, you have to post this (or similar) on your blog to spread the love. Leave me your email address and I will contact you.

Little Fishes

2011-09-23T12:07:00.000-07:00

I know, I stink at blogging. I've been busy!

Long overdue pics from swimming lessons in July. Kaylee is in the red. Really, this is two classes, there were only five, usually four, kids in her class. Her favorite thing was putting her face in the water and looking around. Cam the Man in the center. Loved swimming lessons! Is an excellent back floater!

Kaylee's teacher was adorable. After class the first day, she came up and asked if she could bring Kaylee a treat the next day because she was the only kid that would follow instructions! This is sort of unfair for the other kids in the class because Kaylee had already had a year of preschool and dance classes. She knows how the teacher system works. But if she's going to be teacher's pet and all that, I guess a little reward is okay!

Tyson did great, passed off everything and is getting to be a better swimmer each time we go.

He mostly loves doing cannonballs!

Yeah, I know my little fishes are cute.

Catching up

2011-06-11T12:35:00.000-07:00

I've haven't been great about blogging lately...so here's a whole lot of catch up from the last six months! There are four or five posts here, so scroll all the way down! In January, Cameron got to be the King Bee in Kindergarten. This means he was large and in charge for the whole week.
On his King Bee day, his class got to ask him questions, and he taught them how to build the best Lego ships.

We had 3rd Grade Math Night. All the 3rd graders got to play math oriented games. It was fun, but wish they had involved the whole family, not just Tyson. Check out that arm! BYU quarterback? Just sayin'.

Saint Valentine's Day Lovefest!

Kaylee's preschool trip to the aquarium was a hopping good time!

Aimee got to go and help chaperon 5 little girls. Kaylee and her friend from dance, Kailey, were golden, another girl was the snottiest little thing I've ever met, and the other two were wanderers. They sure kept me on my toes! Kay's favorite part was the new penguin exhibit.

The Bean Museum Reptile Show with neighborhood friends!

Dyeing Easter eggs!

Pinewood Derby 2011! Cars made by Tyson, Cameron, and Dad all had respectable showings, but the car made by Mom and the Primary Presidency (okay, Trent made this one too) dominated the field! Our sweet friends, the Martin kids, each entered a car and they wiped everyone else off the map! Next year, they are going to have to teach the rest of the ward their derby car secrets.

Cuddling up with Dad and cousin Lucy!

Kay's big dance recital! Weird to see make up on your three year old. She was excellent! Not a drop of stage fright, and all her grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins came to support her.

The boys got her flowers!

In February, Kaylee cut her own hair! And Barbie's hair. Mom took her to have it evened out into a cute A line. Then she cut that too. Then Aunt Lissa had to even that out into a bob. And Kaylee had to throw her favorite pink craft scissors in the garbage.

Summertime Hopscotch

2011-06-11T12:10:00.000-07:00

I love the cooler weather, but even I was glad to see the sun finally appear last week. This water hopscotch was on sale at Target for $3. Had to get it!

It squirts when you jump on the squares. The kids had a blast. They can't wait for more summer sun, sleeping in, doing nothing, and swim lessons next month.

Tongue Tied

2011-06-11T11:12:00.001-07:00

At our dental cleanings on Monday, Dr. R discovered that Kay was literally tongue tied. Her tongue was attached right behind her bottom teeth. She couldn't even touch her tongue to her top teeth. She hasn't been a big talker, and we attributed it to being a third child, but there were other warning signs too. She was a terrible nurser as a baby and she mumbles on the rare occasion she does talk.
She loved the "elephant nose." She got sillier and sillier with the goofy gas, and was making faces at the assistant and Dr. R. Plus, she got to watch The Little Mermaid. Who wouldn't enjoy that?!

She was so good and held very still ("like a statue") during her frenectomy. The dentist used a laser to cut back the membrane that attached her tongue to the bottom of her mouth. I wasn't prepared for the bad smell.

Not as happy after the first go. The stick in her mouth has numbing stuff on it, but she couldn't keep it under her tongue and kept flipping it out of her mouth. The dentist removed a good portion of the membrane, then gave her a minute with more goofy gas after he checked it and realized she needed more removed. They all got to wear cool glasses because of the laser.

She has done really, really well. The pain killers made her extremely silly. Trent and I took her with us to Key Scouters Meeting that night and she was bouncing off the walls. Kaylee is usually pretty shy around adults she doesn't know really well, but she wasn't shy that night! It was quite the personality change! She will have a follow up visit later, but she has so much more movement with her tongue now. We've already noticed a difference in her speech. We're so grateful she did so well and is recovering so quickly! Ask her to stick her tongue out; she can actually accommodate now!

Magic Grandma

2011-06-11T10:40:00.000-07:00

My sweet mom has been planning to make these for the kids for weeks. They are empty soda bottles she cleaned out, cut a slit down the side, and then filled with confetti shred and goodies for the kids. Then she put a big label with their name on it over the slit, and the kids have to figure out how to get their treats out, and how Grandma got them in. She must be magic!
Tyson grabbed the biggest knife he could find and started stabbing away before I could stop him.

Here's the link showing how she did it. http://www.abc4.com/content/news/top_stories/story/Packages-in-a-bottle/cXGoJtdI6UKAoWi-ZlFDWg.cspx
I think my nieces might be getting these for their birthdays this year. You can actually mail them!

Definitely a big hit, Grandma!

Happiest Place on Earth (part 1)

2011-06-06T09:14:00.000-07:00

For Christmas, Grandpa and Grandma R gave us all tickets to Disneyland. We got the kids duffle bags to use on the trip and put Grandma and Grandpa's tickets in them. Best gift ever! Best family vacation ever! It really is the happiest place on earth, and we can't wait to go back. Can you tell Kay doesn't quite realize what it is yet?

Disclaimer: Trent only sent me a few pics of Kay for her spotlight at preschool, so there will be more coming that include Cam and Tys! We went the end of January with the whole R family. It was the perfect time to go. Not too hot or too crowded.
Kaylee and Tink

Duffy is Mickey Mouse's teddy bear. I had no idea.

Stop flashing gang signs, Tyson!

Can you tell this girl is in heaven?! Aurora is her favorite. I've never seen her smile so much.

We also discovered on this trip that Kay has a very distinct running style (aka Phoebe from Friends). Hysterical!

Check This Out!

2011-05-03T16:15:00.000-07:00

Check out this blog and then follow it! It is written my husband's cousin's wife. Confusing, I know, but she is great! She has been writing community pieces for the Daily Herald the last little bit. Give her a read. You will laugh and cry, then spread the word and become a M.E.A.N.E.S.T. Mom Ever devotee!

themeanestmomever.blogspot.com

New Cousin: Lucy Kay

2011-04-23T07:57:00.001-07:00

My kids finally have a cousin on my side!Lucy Kay
Tys was really mad that the hospital doesn't allow kids under fourteen (even if they are immunized) to visit the Mother/Baby ward. The kids finally got to meet her the day she came home (she was three days old, because she was breech, poor Lissa had to have a c-section).

Grandma asked Tyson what he thought about Lucy, he said, "I love her!"

Cameron just kept grinning at her and Kaylee kept running up and kissing or patting her head.

So happy she is here and part of our family!

Cheerio, Trent, Old Chap! Pip, pip!

2011-02-09T08:38:00.000-08:00

Trent has been working for the same company for nearly ten years. They make construction/insurance software. So, if your house burns down they have different softwares that can do anything from helping your contractor determine how many nails and sheets of drywall it will take to rebuild, to helping your insurance adjustor determine what your house was worth.

He started in the pricing department as a researcher, then did a stint in the training department about four years ago flying all over the US and Canada training client contractors and insurance adjustors on how to use their products. I went with him once and was amazed at how good he was. He knows his stuff, to be sure.

After a year in training, his old boss asked him to come back to pricing and start up the contents side (now they have a product that will tell you what the stuff inside your house is worth), then he became an ITV analyst. Don't ask me what that means. Something to do with spread sheets, and clients, and construction.

Anyway, a few weeks ago his boss asked Trent to apply for two new positions that were coming up. Either would have been great for Trent.

I have to stop here and tell you how great Trent's boss is. He has been very lucky to have several bosses at this company, all of whom have cared about their employees and want the best for them, in addition to what is best for the company.

After an hour long interview for the International Coordinator position last Thursday, and another hour long interview for the team lead on Friday, Trent felt good about both meetings, but didn't know which way the chips would fall.

Monday, his boss told him he was chosen for the International Coordinator position, and they announced it to the company yesterday. He will get to travel to London in a few weeks. It is a brand new position for the company, so he is back to creating his own position again (just like contents!). He will get to work with clients in Europe and travel, but still stay with the wonderful people he works with now in the pricing department.

We have been extremely blessed. I'm so grateful Trent is one of the good ones. He is smart, a hard worker, generous and sweet. He would do anything for his family, and I couldn't ask for a better best friend and partner.

Give him a pat on the back. He has earned it to be sure, and we are SO proud of him.

Fancy Foot Work

2011-01-06T12:42:00.000-08:00

Kaylee had her first dance recital back in December.It was kind of an in-class practice recital for their big production in May. Besides being the youngest in her class, she is also the smallest, but she holds her own!
She loves all the ballet and tumbling, and is so good at paying attention to Miss B.

The double chin comes out when she really, really happy!

Daddy, Grandma Candee, and Aunt Jen came with Mom, so she was totally showing off her skills.

We couldn't be prouder of our little ladybug!

2011 is HERE!

2011-01-06T12:36:00.000-08:00

Can you believe it? Another year gone. Kids celebrated New Years with Grandma and Grandpa in Bountiful, so Mom and Dad could go rock out with the neighbors!
Poor Grandpa wasn't feeling well, but Grandma always goes all out. They did poppers and glow sticks and horns and had themselves a fine time, right up until 9:30 PM when they went to bed! Way to party all night!

Merry Christmas 2010!

2010-12-23T10:34:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas!

Flood Divorce Disaster Memories

2010-12-21T18:21:00.000-08:00

I was thrilled to wake up to an actual accumulation of snow today! After our less than impressive "blizzard" a few weeks ago, and several days of rain, it has been feeling more like spring and less like December. But today we have sparkly white covering our brown lawn, and Christmas is almost here!

The storm caused havoc down in Southern Utah were the Santa Clara and Virgin Rivers are expected to flood again, bringing back a host of memories for our family.

Nearly six years ago, during the second week in January, we watched four days of non-stop news coverage while we were in the hospital having Cam. We were horrified to see the banks erode away and home after home plunge into the river. I was especially worried because we had just bought the lot for our first home which sat at the top of a ridge overlooking the runoff from AF Canyon. What if that ever flooded? Would our neighborhood fall? Not likely. We're not even considered in a flood plain. Oh, and Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt announced their divorce that week. Yep. That's what I remember.

When Kay was born, we watched four days of the Crandall Canyon mine disaster, hoping and praying that the miners would somehow be freed. The nurses would come in to my room and ask for updates on the miners. Sadly, all of the men remain entombed.

I don't remember what was happening in the world when Tyson was born. It was Thanksgiving, we were in the hospital for seven days because I contracted a uterine infection after my emergency c-section. I basically slept through most of it. I do remember my family bringing us Thanksgiving dinner, because they are awesome like that!

Christmas Picture Attempt

2010-11-30T11:24:00.000-08:00

We attempted Christmas pictures a few weeks ago at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Trent and Jen with their big, nice cameras, and me with my point and shoot, with Grandma trying to entice three wiggle worms to smile nice and hold still.
Still haven't had time to look at the pics on the good cameras to see if any of them turned out, but here are the ones off mine for posterity.

Proof they can only go about ten seconds before they start hamming it up!

"How much longer?"

I could put that on a nice Christmas card, right?

Future Blackmail

2010-11-30T11:22:00.000-08:00

Someday, I'll use this picture for proof that they actually do love each other (insert wicked laugh here)!

Ballet Bug

2010-11-30T11:05:00.000-08:00

Kaylee started dance/tumbling in September. Miss B lets you do a trial day, just to make sure they like it. Kaylee spent the entire class with a huge smile and a look of pure rapture on her face. She loves it, with one catch. She loves the ballet, the tumbling, the structured dance, but this is a 3 year old class, so Miss B tosses in a few songs where the girls get to dress up or use props and free dance to the music. Fun, right? Wrong. Our little ballerina usually spends these songs clinging to either Miss B or me and in tears. She is embarrassed to dance around without reason.
Tippy toe turn! A few weeks ago, I took some video of her dancing in class on my phone. Suddenly, free dancing is acceptable, not to mention fun, as long as mom tapes her and she gets to see it afterward!

They have a big performance in the spring, but they got pictures taken today (by my amazingly talented old neighbor, click on her website to the right. Kari Hennefer Photography. I think she is still taking appointments for Christmas pictures), so they got to dress up in their ladybug costumes.

Don't wake the ladybug...she needs her beauty sleep!

Kids Say:

2010-11-23T19:53:00.000-08:00

Cameron:

My name rhymes with when. You know, when! C-A-M-E-R-O-N, like when. Like when you go somewhere. When!
Utah accents coming back to haunt us.

We do pronounce his name CamerEn, not CamerOn.

Tyson:

Why do we call them TV sets if there is only one?

Verification

2010-11-23T18:32:00.000-08:00

I am often amazed at the word verification codes you type in when you comment on someone's blog. Amazed because often, not always, but often they seem to have some subliminal connection to the blog post I just read. For instance, my friend blogged about the passing of her family dog. The word verification when I commented: sqezmi. Like squeeze me? She really did need a hug. I wonder what would happen if everyone included those crazy letter/number combos in their comments? "Hey Bob! Loved your post. bLgMo0r."

Birthday Bow-A-Rama!

2010-11-20T11:47:00.000-08:00

Tyson is nine! He decided to go bowling this year. Boys only...sad, huh.

They were a little excited.

Tys showing off his mad skills. I think bowling prowess skips a generation.

We have such nice boys on our block!

In the end, the boys did well, but got beat by E (our neighbor who came to help) and Kaylee! The girl has super, granny style rolling skills! Not to belittle your bowling accomplishments, E, but she is three, and you have a few decades on her, so props to Miss Kay!

My sweet friend who is much better at cakes (she is a birthday party queen!) helped me with the cupcakes. It took us a few hours and we were up to our elbow in frosting, but they turned out pretty cute. Tyson loved that he got the bowling ball.
Ten boys, ten pins in bowling. So grateful the H family came along to help! Somehow I counted wrong (math was never my strong point) and we ended up short seat belts for the ride down. So glad K and E came to the rescue and took a few kids down. Couldn't ask for better friends and neighbors. So glad Tys had such a wonderful time with his friends and family!

Party and Parade (Scary Edition)

2010-11-04T20:01:00.000-07:00

I got to help Cameron's teacher with their Halloween party this year! She always plans the best stations, each centered around a book. This year they played bingo, made shape monsters, drank witches brew (root beer with dry ice), and made monster pizzas.
Immediately after was the school Halloween Parade where I got to catch of glimpse of my cute little spooks.
Ninja Tyson
He's so quick, if you blink, you'll miss him!

Harry Potter, aka Cameron

(I know! He does look like a five year old version of Daniel Radcliffe, but cuter and minus the nasty bejasty Broadway show.)

Kaylee's party was immediately after the Halloween Parade. This is her twirling outside the school, because she loves her costume, but she won't look at the camera because she is mad that we are leaving without the boys.

After school, we cleaned out our pumpkins so we could carve them Saturday. Then ran to church to get ready for our ward Chili Cook Off, Primary Halloween games, and trunk or treat. It was a crazy day, but so fun. BOO!

Cubs

2010-11-04T19:49:00.000-07:00

In September, Tyson's Wolf den went to the Firehouse. I've never seen them so excited, trying to keep it cool, unable to contain the pure joy of big, manly trucks!!!
I am so grateful for the Cubs leaders in my ward. I don't think most people understand the importance of Cub Scouts. You are helping parents to raise future missionaries and fathers. You get to work with these marvelous, excited, just bursting to learn little spirits. What better calling is there?

I learned long ago (you whipper snappers!) that Heavenly Father is no waster of time. If he asks us to do something, it is for our own benefit or the benefit of those in our lives. If he ever asks you to be a Cub Scout leader, take him up on it. It just might be the best calling you ever have!

I love that face!

New Do, New You!

2010-11-04T09:36:00.000-07:00

I've been dying to cut Kay's hair for a while. It is so thin that when it gets long it's just static hair everywhere! So yesterday, we did it! Cute little A-line. The girl who did it couldn't believe how good she was. She sat in the chair with a shy smile on her face and told the ladies how old she was, her teacher's name, all about her brothers and her friends.
It is really short, but she kept walking around yesterday singing, "Pretty hair!" And she told everyone she met as she pointed to her head, "I got a hair cut....this one."

First Field Trip!

2010-11-04T09:26:00.000-07:00

Kaylee had her first field trip in preschool to the Paleontology Museum at BYU (which if you live in the area, is free (they ask for donations), small and fun!). Cameron got to come because he was out of kindergarten already!

It was obviously fascinating!

Cam and Kay standing in front of a brachiosaur femur. They are showing me that it is the same bone Kaylee broke when she was a baby.

Kay, Lucy, and Cam in the jaws of a ferocious, ancient, kid-eating crocodile!

Football!

2010-11-04T09:18:00.000-07:00

As I forgot to register for soccer this year...OOPS!...Tyson gave flag football a try! He had a pretty good experience with lots of friends on the team. He played center most of the season and tried to be a good blocker. At one point during the season, Trent and I were discussing a BYU loss. Tyson interrupted in a shocked tone, "BYU lost?! They can't lose. They're the best team in the world!" At least BYU can say they have the best fans if Tyson is among them.
Hanging on the sideline with Dad!

That Heavenly Father, he's one smart cookie...

2010-10-07T12:24:00.000-07:00

I've been pondering the purpose of callings in the Church. In the traditional sense, a calling would be something life changing, a different path, that God revealed to someone. In the LDS Church, callings can last from a few months to years and years. There are some that people dread. And some that aren't so bad. I don't think I've ever heard anyone say they want such and such a calling. No one ever refers to a calling like it's a good thing.
Yet, callings are one of those huge, brilliant ideas from Heavenly Father. Not only do callings help get things done; trust me, Primary doesn't work if you don't have teachers called, but they give us a sense of purpose, a place to fill, people, nay friends to work with. I hate not having a calling. Give me something to do and someone to do it with! Most of the lasting friendships I have had are the result of a calling somewhere along the line.
Take nursery leaders, for example. Saints among men. If there are no nursery leaders, no nursery, no place for children ages 18 months to 3 years to go, thus their parents can't go to Sunday School, Relief Society, Elders Quorum. The parents can't teach their classes and do their callings. Without nursery leaders, the Church falls apart.
I can look back at every calling I have had and see the Lord's hand. I can see things I learned about myself, things I learned about God, friends I wouldn't have know otherwise, even things I have learned about my children.
I am grateful that every calling in the Church serves a purpose, whether it is for the benefit of others or for ourselves. We are truly blessed when we are called to serve.

Initially, I hate initalisms.

2010-09-29T20:31:00.000-07:00

Initalisms, or acronyms. Blah. LOL, LMAO, OMG, and my least favorite, WTF. Why can't we as Americans quite playing to the lazy stereotype and defend our own language?! If you're going to swear, have the guts to really swear. And type it out for pity's sake! If I have to hear/see your less than eloquent way of speaking/typing, then do it for real. Acronyms are a cop out.

2010 Red Rock Relay

2010-09-22T07:58:00.000-07:00

September 10 and 11, Trent ran with a team from work in the Red Rock Relay.Red Rock goes from Brian Head to St. George, 186 miles, from snow to sun. Each team runs 36 legs divided among 12 runners.
12 people, but two vans. He had a blast! He didn't sleep all weekend and ran more than 18 miles. They timed really well, especially considering that for most of the team this was their first really big race.

Their team name this year was the "How did we get into this mess?" Appropriate. Next year they are considering "Do these shorts make my butt look FAST?" Also appropriate.

First Day of the Rest of Your Life....

2010-09-03T14:02:00.000-07:00

My baby started her formal education today.

This is her carpooling buddy, Miss Lucy. They were holding hands all through class. It's nice to have a friend in a new situation.
Mrs. R is the best! We love her to bits!
Instead of school t-shirts, the PTA at our elementary school decided to do "Spirit Sleeves." Tyson has been bothering me since school started to buy some, but I kept forgetting cash.

Who knew the world end if Tyson didn't get leg warmers for his arms?I know they don't look thrilled in the pic, but the sun is in their eyes. They spent a good half an hour after school figuring out how many different ways you can wear spirit sleeves. I have to admit, as funny as these things are: no funky kid sizes, inexpensive, and the kids love them. Spirit sleeves are brillant! Any bets on how long before they each lose one half of their pair?

Back to School (2010 Edition)

2010-09-01T07:15:00.000-07:00

And we're back! Tyson started third grade last week! He was very nervous about it this year because there are two Mrs. D's that teach third. He was afraid he would have the more strict Mrs. D. He doesn't, and he loves his new teacher, mostly because she bribes them with candy and she has an old porcelain bathtub in her classroom filled with pillows for reading time.
When we attended the Teacher Meet & Greet, he told Mrs. D all about how happy he was that he was in the "good" Mrs. D's class and not the "bad" Mrs. D's class. Mom's face was all kinds of red. Way to make that first impression Tys!

Cameron started Kindergarten today! He had a meeting with his new teacher, Mrs. T, last week, but they are old friends from when Tyson was in her class. He wasn't one bit nervous, just excited to get going, probably because he is so familiar with Mrs. T and her classroom. He asked every day, "How many more days until I start?" "I'm going to make lots of new buddies." "Mrs. T likes me already because she likes Tyson and we have an awesome family."

He could hardly wait to get going this morning. Tyson was so excited to play the big brother role and show him where to go. After a quick pic with CR the Cougar and C, who carpools with us, and shaking hands with Mr. B the principal, they walked to the door with their arms around each other!

Bad Hair Day Revisited

2010-08-27T19:31:00.000-07:00

I looked a little more online this morning before Kaylee woke up. I had a suspicion that the current oily state of her hair was more from the baby oil and less from the Aquaphor. So I dug around in my cupboards until I found some body wash without any moisturizer or conditioner added, and gave it a try. One washing with the body wash, one with her normal shampoo, and her hair is pretty much back to normal! YAY! She won't have to wear a hat to church on Sunday after all!

Bad Hair Day just doesn't do it Justice...

2010-08-26T19:58:00.000-07:00

Kay has a nasty obsession with girlie things. She gets into my make up. She loves lotion. She even sits still and plays with the bottles on the bathroom counter like dolls, while I spend forever doing her hair. She loves clothes, and changing her clothes...often. I don't know where she get this girlie streak. Obviously, not from her mother. She looks so innocent. Don't be fooled. Kay knows there are some bottles, like lotion and soap, that you put on your hands, and some bottles, like hair gel, that go in your hair. This is where Kay's understanding of bottles gets...messy.
This morning, Kaylee confused Aquaphor with hair gel. A lot of Aquaphor. Yes, she did do this before with Vaseline. And lotion, several times with the lotion. After four shampoo-ings this morning, a good bout of research this evening, a treatment of baby oil (this was the remedy they said to try online), and another two shampoo-ings, these are the fabulous results. Nope. Her hair is dry. It only looks wet because it now contains Aquaphor and baby oil.
Actually, it's a big improvement over just the Aquaphor. I guess we'll try the egg remedy in the morning.

Backyard (Almost) Done and Jensen Family Reunion

2010-08-04T19:10:00.000-07:00

This is my view from my bedroom! No longer dirt and rocks, but grass and plants and trees! However, we have one fly in the ointment. They just dug the two lots behind us and there is a little dispute as to where the property lines are. The developer has one set of measurements, we used the measurements the county has recorded.... The pink stakes are the developers markers, the orange peg in the ground is ours. Do you see the pink over spray on my fire pit!!! It will all get resolved tomorrow morning, so we'll see what happens.
Still no railing on the deck, but all the plants are in and my favorite is turning out to be the fountain grass we bought on a whim. Someday we will cover the foundation posts with rock.
This is the current project. A retaining wall to keep the mulch in the planter since we had to move the trees in. Yes, we've been dealing with this property line garbage in one form or another for a year now. The landscaper who put in the yards on both sides of our backyard didn't exactly do his due diligence when it came to the property lines. We assumed he had until we were trying to measure our back line out and couldn't get anything to line up. So, we had to move trees and mulch on both sides, just in case somewhere down the line we put a fence in. But now we will have a nice retaining/seating wall by the fire pit.

Fire pit is in and getting sufficient use. Can you say s'mores with peanut butter cups?

Our little garden is in. Lots of strawberries and peppers; cukes, tomatoes, and zucchinis on the way. Kay loves picking the strawberries.

Water fountain in! Trent wanted to do a great big water feature that involved drilling a hole in a rock, which I admit would have been pretty. He compromised with me and we picked up this pot on sale earlier in the summer. It was really windy tonight! That's why the water is off to the side.

Planters mulched, plants in, trees relocated!

We are loving having grass this year and being almost to the stage where all we have to do it mow and weed. So close! There are before pics in my blog archive from June and March 2009 if you want to see the difference. Can't wait until those lots behind us are landscaped too!

Jensen Family Reunion was last month. We had a great time with all the cousins and their kids. It's so fun to get all together and we don't do it nearly enough considering how close most of us live to each other.

Trent rented canoes from the local university and they were a total hit!

They caught two fish and Tys passed off a ton of cub scout stuff! I got sunburned on my shins (who does that?!). Everyone had a blast.

Say What?

2010-07-26T09:33:00.000-07:00

Saturday we were running errands and Cameron begins a very serious discourse on why Batman is NOT a superhero.

"Batman is a guy who battles villains and bad people, he's NOT a superhero."

***

Last week, for a treat, I took the kids to McDonald's for breakfast after swimming lessons. In the drive through Tyson is trying to decide what he wants, but just can't remember what it's called. I guess we don't go to McDonald's often enough (read that in the sarcastic tone it is intended to be read in. I don't like fast food).

"Mom, I want those things that are...um....you know....the things that are shaped like a trapezoid that's cut in half with the end rounded over. Like a cone with a circle on the end that's squashed flat. Those things."

Oh, of course. Hash browns.

***

Kay's new favorite game is to sit on your lap, with your cheeks in her hands, saying, "I love you."

Of course, you would respond with, "I love you!"

To which she yells, "No, I love you!"

Can you see where this is going?

She loves to go back and forth with "I love yous," escalating until she is literally shrieking it at the top of her lungs.

What a quiet, sweet thing she is.

Pioneer Primary Party

2010-07-17T11:45:00.000-07:00

This morning was our Primary Pioneer Party. We (the Primary presidency) have been trying to get the kids excited for it since April. We made a map of the five states the pioneers crossed with our party date and time on it and moved a little wagon across the trail, telling a story, or just updating the pioneers location every Sunday in Primary. For the actual party we had six stations, each with a pioneer story to go along with it. We divided the kids into companies and gave them name tags with the name and age of a real pioneer child on it.

At the Sweetwater station, our secretary filled a kiddie pool with ice water, told them the Sweetwater account about the three boys that carried the rest of the company across the icy river and then died, and let the kids "ford" our little version.

The Primary president told a cute story about how the first school in Utah was started by a fourteen year old girl looking to entertain the children on the trail, then the kids sidewalk chalked around the church.

The second counselor did a pack the handcart relay with wheelbarrows and a cute story about how a girl was able to bring her fragile china doll across the plains.

Our CTR 7 teacher did the hilarious, but slightly disgusting, "Buffalo Chip Relay." We made "buffalo chips" with spray foam and spray painted them brown. The kids were divided into two teams and raced against each other to find a chip and place it in the fire (crumpled up red and yellow tissue paper), then tag the next kid on their team. She read them a story about a girl who was trampled in a buffalo stampede, but was healed through faith. We also made no bake cookies for the kids to eat here, because you know what no bake cookies look like.....

The chorister sang pioneer song with the kids while they shook up cream and salt in baby food jars to make butter. Then they spread it on wheat bread and had a snack.

I read the kids a true story about a girl who had nightmares on the trek West and was comforted by an Indian who made her a pioneer "night light" (a glass jar with fireflies in it). We had so many baby food jars donated, we HAD to use them up. So, the kids filled the jars with glow in the dark beads and glitter and water to make their own pioneer nightlights. They loved that they really glowed!

We had a ton of help from our wonderful CTR 5 teacher, two of the Beehives, a Deacon, and the primary presidents husband. It was so much fun, I forgot to take pictures, but here are Tys and Cam showing off their bounty.

Now we can start worrying about the Primary program....

Run, Baby, run!

2010-07-05T11:41:00.000-07:00

Trent ran his first 10K today in the Freedom Run. He is prepping for the Red Rock Relay this fall, so this was good practice. He did great, especially when you consider the utter lack of running he has been doing lately. He had expected to do a 10 minute mile and came in just under an hour! Better than he thought!
The kids and I were going to go down and cheer him on this morning, then stay for the Freedom Festival Parade, but poor Cam was up and down all night with an upset stomach. Instead, they spent most of the morning making Dad a beautiful poster.

Tyson Meets the Tooth Fairy!

2010-06-23T08:53:00.001-07:00

Tyson has inherited my slow teeth. All through kindergarten, first grade, and second, poor Tyson stood by and watched his friends loose tooth after tooth, while his beautiful smile remained sadly intact. About three months ago, he discovered his first wiggly tooth! He wiggled and pulled and jiggled, but that stubborn thing would not come out. His permanent tooth was coming up behind, but that baby would not leave! So after a visit to the dentist on June 7th to have his tooth forcible evicted, the Tooth Fairy finally made her first appearance at our house.Like the form letter he wrote for her? My favorite line is "please report back. But can I have the money?" The Tooth Fairy has a special little jar and bag in which she leaves the tooth and the money. Tyson was so excited the next morning when he opened the bag, he took scissors to the ribbon that held it closed (see the leftover scraps?). Perhaps next time she can bring us a new bag.
Tyson loves the dentist. We go to a really good office. One of the dentists shares my dad's name. The whole thing, just different spellings. Tyson actually gets excited when we have our cleaning appointments; he asks when we will be going next! I believe this is mostly due to the toy chest in their office.
I had them do a full set of x-rays on him, just to make sure that he actually had permanent teeth under his babies (I am missing two, so I still have two baby teeth on the bottom). Luckily, his are all there, but they are huge. I see an orthodontist in our future....

Mad for Mother's Day

2010-05-12T08:22:00.000-07:00

I was in a terrible mood all weekend. I want to preface this by saying I have a bad attitude when it comes to Mother's Day. I love celebrating it for my mom and Trent's, but I am not a fan. I figure we will celebrate it for me when my kids are grown up. For now we spend it driving everywhere visiting our fantastic moms and they are totally worth it!
Saturday we had Cam and Tys' soccer games at the same time (for the third time this season), so I didn't get to see Tys' game. After our game, Kay, Cam, and I ran to the store for milk and bread and antihistamine (which I'll get back to in a minute). We had just walked in when we ran into the other half of our family. Trent and Tyson slinking around the back of the store, looking like I caught them with their hands in the cookie jar. I know exactly what they are up to.
Suddenly, all three kids have to visit the restroom, so I give Trent an opportunity to finish whatever he is up to by telling him to take the kids to the bathroom and I will finish shopping. I figured they would be gone at least twenty minutes with the bathroom and the "sneaking."
Nope. They were back in five. I started to get mad. Bad enough he waits until the last possible minute to shop for Mother's Day (I always get our mom's gifts for him), but now he's not going to get me anything?! Not that I need anything....it would just be nice....
We leave the store and I am positively wallowing. Plus, I forgot the antihistamine! We spend the rest of the day trying to finish moving the trees (again, I'll get to this in a minute), and then we have to run the digger back to the tool rental place before five. We pack the kids into the truck and head to Orem. We are all filthy from weeding and digging. We had borrowed Trent's dad's truck because it can handle the heavy machinery trailer better than Trent's truck, so we had to go swap trucks in Provo too. After visiting with the in-laws for a bit, we had to go shopping for some slacks for Trent's latest business trip. We spent all night looking for stuff for everyone else, and by the time we left the store I was on the verge of tears wondering if they even remembered that tomorrow was Mother's Day.
On the way home, the kids were starving, so we started to stop at Wendy's, but Trent kept pushing me to pick some place else, even though it was 8 on a Saturday night, we were dirty, the kids were starving and tired, and I was stinking deeper into my wallow. We finally settled on Mexican.
Sunday morning I am the first one up (typical, no breakfast in bed for this chic). I hadn't been able to finish some of my Primary stuff for the day because I couldn't get a hold of some people. I HAD to get to Church early so I could get stuff done! Of course, my kids are dragging. Finally, I leave without them, without breakfast, running late, and my feet are killing me. By the end of Church (which was great! The kids sang so cute in Sacrament Meeting and the bookmarks we made for the Primary kids to give the moms were adorable), I just wanted to go back to bed. My toes were on fire, I was tired and frustrated.
Trent took the kids upstairs to change their clothes and I got started on lunch and the stuff we were taking to dinner. I could hear them running around upstairs and I figured Trent was trying to redeem himself, but I was still stewing.
Then Cameron comes downstairs and asks if I will cut out a heart for him. He is grinning from ear to ear. Trent comes downstairs and asks if I can stop being mad long enough to come sit on the couch. Cam gave me his cute card. He was positively giddy that I had cut it out but he didn't tell me what it was for. So clever! They gave me beautiful tulips and a card and....and iPod Touch!!! Yay! I love it. The kids love it too....they want to watch movies on it and play the lightsaber game. All is quickly forgiven. I realize what an impatient, selfish pill I've been! OF COURSE THEY LOVE ME?! Duh, I know this. We spent the rest of the day with our beautiful Moms. Loved it!
As to my gorgeous toes. Evidently, I am really allergic to something in our dirt. We found out last week that the landscaper who did the yards on both sides of our backyard didn't survey the lots. So he missed the property lines by several feet...on both sides. Which means our yard just got about five feet skinnier and we had to move trees we planted last year. Normally, Trent would try and find someone else to help him because of my back, but everyone cancelled at the last minute, and he couldn't find any non-busy friends on a Friday night. Funny how the Spirit works. Our WONDERFUL neighbor Travis came wandering over and asked if we needed help! Love this man. I owe him brownies, lots and lots of brownies...maybe a whole cake.
I've been digging around the backyard weeding for weeks, but for some reason, stomping up and down on freshly moved trees in flip flops triggered what I thought was a sunburn...until the blisters and sores popped out all over my toes. I would post a picture, but feet are ugly enough on their own without the red rash and puss-filled blisters. Seriously, gross. Plus, I've had to wear flip flops all weekend (including Church) because shoes hurt, so everyone gets a good look at the hideousness that are my feet. Nice.

May I Rant?

2010-05-04T12:56:00.000-07:00

Can I just stand on my soapbox and vent for a moment? Primary: Best calling in the Church.

I mean it.

I will admit that when I was a Primary teacher, at times I felt very much like a glorified babysitter. Luckily, I also realized that I was also performing a huge service for the kid's parents by allowing them to go to their classes and feel the Spirit.

But a calling is Primary is more than that, whether it be as a teacher, a Cub Scout leader, or in Activity Days. You are helping to raise and grow future missionaries, future leaders of the Church, future members of your community.

What greater responsibility is there?! What more important calling is there?!

My beautiful friend and Primary President said something a few weeks ago that had never occurred to me before:

"They deserve a lesson."

And they do. As a teacher, you are not there to just keep them out of trouble and keep them quiet. You are a teacher! Heavenly Father didn't call you to be a babysitter, he called you to be a teacher. Teach them. They are Children of God, and they deserve to know it. So teach them that their Heavenly Father loved them enough to give them good parents who would bring them to church. He loved them enough to restore the Gospel, so they would have something to learn about and aspire too. And He loved them enough to call YOU to Primary, so you can serve them, teach them, and learn to love them too.

I don't believe there is a harder or more rewarding calling in the Church than being in Primary. You don't get the awards and the accolades, but you will get the blessings. And you will learn to love those kids.

Primary teachers, CS leaders, AD leaders who do more than just show up, but come with every intention of fulfilling and magnifying their callings, they are the ones who understand and love Primary. Thank you to those sweet brothers and sisters. You deserve every blessing that comes your way and a million more.

I'll hop down now.

Lissa Lou

2010-05-04T08:17:00.000-07:00

I know. You are totally thinking, "Ahh. The 80s. Aren't we glad our hair will never look like that again!" And this, this is Southern 80s, so...enough said.

See the cute red head on the far left? That's Annelle. Well no, actually, that's my sister Melissa. She is playing Annelle (yes, the religious skank) in Roger's production of Steel Magnolias. If you live Davis County way, you should go see it. It you don't, you should go see it anyway. She's worth the drive, trust me.

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700028724/Stage-calendar-Magnolias-among-theater-offerings.html

By the way, for the record, I have to mention Steel Magnolias is one of the best chic flicks ever, no matter what my husband says. I cry every time during that scene with Sally Fields and the girls. You know which one I mean. Go watch the play, then you can watch the movie some weekend on one of those women's channels. It's on almost every weekend, with good reason!

Date Night

2010-04-30T11:31:00.000-07:00

Last night I went to the NGS, FamilySearch, and LDS Church sponsored "Celebration of Family History" (http://www.familysearch.org/ngs2010/)with Tyson. We made it into a mommy/son date. Grandma Candee has been working on five short films that were shown during the concert for months and months. The films were wonderful; I cried through all but one of them (I know, me cry? Shocking!). It will probably be rebroadcast on KBYU this weekend if anyone is interested.

The real heart-wrencher was the film about a lady from Hawaii searching for her grandmother Emma. Emma had been sent away to a leper colony on an isolated island when she was 24 years old. There she met and fell in love with her husband. Together they had six children, all of whom were immediately taken from them for fear they would contract Leprosy. They never knew what happened to their children. This lady went to the island and searched the graveyard three times. It was this third time that she found the records and her grandparent's headstones.

Tyson's favorite was a film about a family who knew they had Scottish heritage, but were never really that into it. One day their seven year-old comes in and announces he wants to play the bagpipes! Of course he is horrible at first, but over time he becomes really good. They start delving into their history. The daughters take up Highland dancing, one learns Gaelic. It brings their family closer together. After the film the Mo Tab sang "Amazing Grace" accompanied by four bagpipers, the fourth being Jared McCloud (the former seven year old, who is married and has his own children now to pass their Scottish heritage onto). The audience loved it. Standing ovations all around!

President Eyring shared the cutest story about how a family history search resulted in him meeting his wife. David McCullough (author of John Adams and 1776) spoke and soapboxed. It was wonderful, if not a little too long for an eight year old who usually goes to bed around 7:30 pm. He loved "Grandma's movies," but resorted to reading his Jigsaw Jones book during Mr. McCullough's talk. He finally fell asleep against Grandma's shoulder about twenty minutes from the end. I took pictures of him asleep with my phone, but haven't a clue how to get them off.

All the people featured in the films were present for the concert. Over the course of filming them, Mom and Dad played host to a few. It was so neat to meet them and hear their stories. The lady from Hawaii was in love with Tyson's hair and decided he was the politest child ever! He makes a good impression, but wait until you get to know him! Evidently, he waited very patiently for her while she was in the bathroom and told her all about his spelling test today while they were waiting for Mom. He is the sweetest boy! We had such a fun time, but with the bad traffic and scary storm coming over the Point and through Highland, we didn't get home until almost 11:00. Totally worth it to hang with Tys for a night!

Once there was a snowman....

2010-04-20T12:19:00.001-07:00

Clearly, he melted. We made these last year, and as they are so cute, we are making it a Spring time tradition.
Last year we used big chocolate melting chips for the brim of the hat, but I couldn't find any this time, so peppermint patties were a perfect substitute (but they usually get thrown away because Trent's the only one who eats them). Mostly, this is a pantry raid with some leftover Easter Candy (we still have lots, so if you need a candy fix....)

Tyson was a little disappointed. He thought we were using doughnut holes to make snowmen. He wanted his snowman to be non-melted and upright so he could decorate it like a Ben 10 alien. I think we'll have to try doughnut hole snowmen next winter. Good idea Tys! Instead, he just gave his melted snowman four pretzel arms and more eyes than necessary.

Kaylee was clearly more interested in eating the candy than decorating with it.

Good bye Winter! Hello Spring!

A Little Easter, A Little Spring Break?

2010-04-06T19:55:00.000-07:00

Happy Spring Break! Hope you are basking in sunshine and tulips. We are doing this.... This is Cam after he got too cold to be outside in the snow. Yes, I did say snow. Yup. It is April 6.
Kay loved her snowy mitts.
First attempt at snowman...turned into.....

a snow wall.....which was originally a snow fort of some kind. They loved it. They got to warm up with hot chocolate and make Shrinky Dinks all afternoon. Remember Shrinky Dinks!?!?

Saturday for Easter we spent time at my parents with my sisters, bro in law, and my cousins, the Pattee Family, that just moved in down the street from Mom & Dad. Mom went all out as usual. We had yummy creamed eggs and cornbread (and pancakes for the kids) for breakfast, and then the kids headed out to find eggs. It was freezing, but not snowing yet, so they had a riot running around the yard and inside the house looking for eggs.

Kay tried and tried to blow that pinwheel, but she just couldn't get the hang of it.

I have to add: Cam was a champion egg finder this year. After all the egg hunts were over, we counted the real eggs and found we were missing six. He would wander outside every now and then and search until he found another egg (which he actually did, twice!). He says he'll find the rest next time Grandma! The Easter Bunny hid plastic filled eggs all over our house this year. The day after Easter, all three kids come running up from the basement family room, with an egg in each hand. Evidently that Easter Bunny hides eggs a little too well (good thing we keep the hard boiled eggs outside!).

Grandma found those cute felt baskets at the dollars store for all the kids to hunt eggs with. Plus, she made little goodie bags for each of them, in addition to all the candy and change in the eggs they collected. We love Grandma and Grandpa...their the BEST!

During Priesthood Session of Conference, whilst Trent, Dad, Mike, and cousin Ryan were gone, Mom, Lissa, Jen, and I took the kids to see How to Train Your Dragon. Loved it. It was clean (Has Dreamworks finally figured out that the crudeness in Shark Tale and the Shrek movies is not necessarily appreciated in family films? Perhaps.), and the kids were sucked in for the whole movie (except Kay, who con-ed Aunt Lissa into taking her to the bathroom and wouldn't stop kicking the back of the seat in front of her. She's two, what to do?). Liked it better than Princess and the Frog....

I love the look on Kaylee's face in that picture. We came back to our house Saturday night, and the Easter Bunny visited us Sunday morning and Trent's family came up for lunch, but more on that later. Happy Spring! Try not to freeze to death!

Who's the Fool?

2010-04-02T09:01:00.000-07:00

Trent evidently fancies himself Puck, the Trickster King. Last year, he had me believing he had been in a car accident. Yesterday, he and another guy at work put another co-workers brand new truck up for sale (very cheap) on KSL. The poor guy was getting phone calls and txts and emails all morning. So he made a website (http://sites.google.com/site/mattsnuttall/) featuring Trent and M as "Construction Lovers," and sent them some email about it. Kind of lame retaliation, but funny. Trent also helped tape papers to the insides of several other co-workers cabinet doors, and when they opened them Reese's pieces slid off the paper and all over the place. He also tripped my neighbors garage door circuit so it wouldn't open (sorry H family).

To top it all off he got into my FB account and told everyone I am pregnant (insert several curse words here, all screamed with an Irish accent of course). Which I am NOT! He also changed my password so I couldn't take it down. Needless to say, he'll be living out of his truck for a while.

I don't like practical jokes. I think someone usually ends up getting hurt physically or emotionally. I HATE April Fool's. However, if anyone has some magnificent ideas on something that would put Trent in his place....I am all ears.

N is for Nest

2010-03-30T20:30:00.000-07:00

I know.... They are super cute, huh!?We made Easter Egg nests tonight. So fun and super easy. Cameron is in charge of a snack at preschool for the letter N, so this is all I could think of. N is for Nest. First things first, we started off with a rousing debate on why Tyson couldn't help me until he washed his hands.

I won.
I know I have seen these before, but I couldn't find any kind of recipe online, so we winged it. White almond bark, Chinese noodles, and candy eggs. I melted half the block of almond bark (which will burn in the microwave if you look at it wrong, so be careful) and mixed it with one big bag of Chinese noodles. Then tablespoon-ed the nests out and had the kids kind of shape them and add the eggs. That's it. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy (this is Cam's new favorite phrase. Well, that and "okey dokey artichokey." Sometimes he uses them together)! I think the nests turned out cute, and the kids loved making them. In the next few days we are going to make our "Hooray! Spring is here!" Melted Snowmen. I'll post when we do it, especially since I have half a pound of white almond bark left over.....

Patrick's, Pinewood, and Pictures

2010-03-23T21:07:00.000-07:00

Take a deep breath. It's going to be a long one folks. My favorite holiday! Yes, Lucky the Leprechaun visited. He drank our milk and used our toilets, dyed our dinner green, he literary threw gold coins all over our yard (for more on this, talk to Mom and Lis...they saw him!). We woke up to this note, lots of chocolate gold, candy, and books! We LIKE this leprechaun.
We did our first Pinewood Derby! Tyson and Trent were psyched! They researched car designs on the web for the shape. Tyson wanted it to look like Upgrade (for all you Ben 10 fans out there). Trent cut it out, but I made him let Tyson do all the sanding. Tys really did help with every part of his car, except for when Trent decided late the night before that they needed a smoother top coat of varnish. I found him in the garage, eyes watering from the fumes, spraying nearly an entire can of clear coat on the thing. We had various discussions on why derbys are about learning woodworking skills and having fun with Dad and NOT about winning. Evidently, many men in our ward feel this is up for debate. I am over cub scouts for our Primary, so I made really cute certificates for all the boys with a fun award for each of their designs. Tyson got the "Best Ben 10 Alien Annihilator." It took the Primary President and I three hours to come up with 13 awards....

Okay, Aim. Why the feet pic? Well, ROSEANNE (insert growl here) tagged me. And we all know Aimee feels guilty if she doesn't do this stuff, so send it her way. I love you, so I'll do it. The point is, if you are tagged, no cleaning up or whatever, just go take a picture of that room or person, or thing..... Snapshot of your life.
#1 Favorite shoes. Their comfy and easy.
#2 Kitchen Sink. No my back splash is not grouted yet. But he did buy the grout. The thing about being married to a contractor...everyone's projects take priority over yours. It stinks, but it pays the bills.

#3 Favorite Room. This isn't really my favorite room, but it's my favorite spot. I love to sit in our loft and read in my chair. Love it! Someday, Trent will build a desk and some huge bookcases to house my out of control book fetish, and then this will be my favorite room.

#4a What are the kids doing right now? My favorite part of this is that she has taken off her pj pants after we have tucked her in and replaced them with a princess skirt.

#4b See the ratty old blanket he's snuggling with. He's had it since the day he was born and it's falling to pieces, but if you even suggest putting it up, he gets teary. I love My Sweet Boy.

#4c Cam has his falling to piece baby blanket too. They're so sweet asleep. And so quiet.....

#5 Self Portrait. This is me scowling because we all know how Aimee feels about pictures of herself. I must really love you Roseanne.....

#6 Your bathroom. I know...white walls...ugh. Someday (you hear that word a lot around here), I'll paint....Well, no. I'll pick a color and Mr. Perfectionist Painter will paint.

#7 Your closet. Insert evil laugh here! Thank you Ikea. The reason the middle door is missing....Ikea is cheap. Trent had to glue one of the panels back together because the glass is too heavy for the frames. It's down in the garage waiting to be brought back home.

#8 The refrigerator. Yes, we do need that much honey butter. Yes, we do go through a lot of apples. Yes, Kaylee would starve without all that yogurt. No, the margarita mix is not because we are drinkers. Trent is a big fan of smoothies.

#9 Laundry Room. I know my machines don't match. Our washing machine died a year ago, but why replace the dryer when it works just fine? I love my counter. Usually, it would be covered in folded clothes, but I was dog sick yesterday, so nothing got done.

So tag! Your it! Now you do it. Go take a few pics and post.

1. April

2. Kari

3. Amber

4. Courtney

5. Kellie

6. Melissa

Even if I didn't list you, you should go do it anyway. Because you LOVE me! This means you Emily, Leona, Stacey, Macy, Jen, Mom, Mary....I could go on and on.

Embace Life

2010-03-23T19:41:00.000-07:00

My sweet friend sent me this link. Watch it. It's only a minute long and worth every second, especially if it gets you to buckle up. I imagine the only reason you would read this blog is because we know and love each other. I have been in enough car accidents and had friends and family in enough accidents to know I never want to lose someone I love that way. Buckle up.

Buckle your kids up. Drive safe. Because I love you and too me your are worth way more than the few seconds it takes to click it.

http://www.embracethis.co.uk/

Seuss-ism

2010-03-03T09:21:00.000-08:00

"Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." ~Dr. Seuss

Happy Birthday a date late Dr. Seuss!

Tender Mercies...

2010-02-26T08:30:00.000-08:00

I'm thrilled, jumping out of my chair, hoping up and down, and yes, even doing the happy dance. Maybe I'm being a bit premature, but it's possible...probable even...Kaylee might be....POTTY TRAINED!

After all the suffering (and I mean the long, drawn out, months on end kind of messy, disgusting suffering that can come with potty training a boy), Miss Kay was pretty darn easy. The first week I did the pull up thing. (Insert annoying "You are WRONG!" buzzer sound here). The pull ups gave her a terrible scabby rash on her back. So, I sucked it up and we went cold turkey. She's had a few accidents (I thought for sure she would be a stickler on the whole #2 thing). She's even had episodes of begging for her diapers, but yesterday we spent four hours at the Dinosaur museum and she stayed dry! She got up this morning and happily did her thing! She yells/mumbles, "Mommy I go to potty!" every time she needs to use the facilities. I am in bliss....

Especially since yesterday stunk. I don't know why. Nothing totally terrible happened. I was just crabby and crying all day yesterday. It's nice after a day of wallowing in your own self pity and loathing to wake up and realize, "Hey Dim One! You have a wonderful family, remarkable friends and neighbors, a spectacular husband and brilliant children. You live in a nice neighborhood in a gorgeous house your beloved built just for you! You're Heavenly Father loves you and blesses you!

Suck it up and BE HAPPY!"

I think I will....

What to do?

2010-02-23T09:01:00.000-08:00

I registered Cameron for kindergarten yesterday and Kaylee for preschool. All my kids will be in some kind of school next year.... What will I do if Cam and Kay are in school at the same time (this is very unlikely, but possible)? I'll have two whole hours to myself twice a week! The possibilities......

Back Splash Rant!

2010-02-05T13:45:00.000-08:00

I am so excited to show you all how wonderful and beautiful the back splash turned out..... But I can't. It's not done, and it won't be done for probably three weeks.

Trent has been anticipating a big cabinet job for a bakery down in Provo that is expanding to a location in Draper. We are super excited about it! However, the day Trent was going to pick up all their materials they called and said they had to get a few more bids to please their investors. Trent told them they wouldn't find anyone cheaper. (Big commerical cabinet shop = employees, building rent, advertising, tools, utilities, etc.....EXPENSIVE. Two guys building cabinets out of my garage...hardly any overhead....CHEAPER! Probably almost half as much if I go off of our experience with the cabinets in our house. Trent didn't have time then to build all our cabinets, so we hired a commercial shop.... Let's just say more expensive doesn't always mean better quality, it just means more money. Plus, when I say two guys building cabinets...I mean two perfectionists.) They thought they would have 35-40 days to build these cabinets, now they are down to just two weeks (insert image of Trent disappearing behind garage door in slow mo, loud vault-like sound bangs followed by a whooshing noise as door shuts and seals).

On the upside, I got over being wishy washy and decided on a color for grout. Thanks for all the suggestions and votes. I spent probably three hours looking at back splash photos on the Internet, trying to decide what to do. Then I went over to my cute friend's house and inspected her back splash. Hers is a little different than ours, but still close to the same stone tile and so, so pretty. If we just had done the limestone tile without the glass insets, I would totally agree with the vast majority of votes and gone Mocha, but since I love the glass insets and want them to pop, we picked a color a little darker than the Biscuit color. It's pretty much the same shade as the tile, a titch darker, but isn't white and won't look dirty all the time.

I have to say, I am very lucky to have such good friends with such immaculate taste. Thanks girls!

Dilemma

2010-01-30T13:17:00.000-08:00

I am at a loss. This is my Christmas present from Trent this year: my pretty kitchen backsplash which we have avoided putting in for a year and a half now. Done! Gorgeous, huh! Could he be cuter or more handy? I think not. So, here's the problem: It's done, up, and beautiful, now we have to grout. What color? I know, most people think grout only comes in white (this is what we call a contractor special at our house: a choice that all contractors use because they are men and don't know what else to do. Cheapest and easiest). The kind of grout Trent gets come in about thirty different colors. I've narrowed it down....but now I'm stuck. Help!
We have Summer Tan, which matches that one yellowish tile perfectly, but remember, the grout will fill in all the little holes in limestone tiles. Do I want yellowish holes on my pretty tile? I don't know?
This is Chamois. Very neutral.

Darkest of the bunch: Mocha.

So it's down to Mocha, Chamois, Summer Tan, or Biscuit (I would normally consider this off white to be a contractor special, but I am thinking it might make the glass tile look really good?). What's your favorite? Let me know! I'm getting desperate. Trent has a big cabinet order starting soon and if this tile doesn't get grouted this week, it could be another year and a half before it's done!

5 Year Old Mind

2010-01-26T11:54:00.000-08:00

So, we're sitting the car yesterday waiting for Tyson to get out of school, when Cameron leans over and whispers quite seriously, "Mom, how did Heavenly Father get our bloods and our eyes in our bodies?"
How does one respond to that (without laughing!)?

A Very Special Day

2010-01-22T11:06:00.001-08:00

Tyson got baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints December 5th, 2009, by his Dad. He was so excited. We ran into the Bishop twice the day before and both times Tyson made sure to remind him, "Hey Bishop. Baptism tomorrow!"

We had lots of family and friends over after for Tyson's favorite foods: swedish meatballs and couscous. It was a wonderful day and a great way to kick off Christmas. And yes, Tyson is trying to put a bakugan in Kaylee's hair. That's how we roll around here.
Thanks for the pics Mom!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-28T09:44:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful holiday! We spent it between Bountiful and Provo and loved every second of it, especially seeing Trent's brother's family in Indiana on the webcam. Our favorite Christmas tradition is when Santa gives us a fly by and drops a road flare with a sack full of pajamas on Christmas Eve. He is nice enough to do it every year and we all LOVE it! Santa was very nice this year. Tyson got a bike (he can pedal backwards!!!) and an abundance of Ben 10 toys, Cameron got his puppy (stuffed) and lots of legos and playmobil and star wars guys. Kaylee finally got a scooter (three wheeled, like I'm allowing this cute klutz anywhere near a razor!) and dolls and a purse full of girly goodies she won't put down. Very nice Santa, thank you. We had several good talks about Jesus' birthday and why we celebrate Christmas, and we were lucky enough to be able to help out a little with some service projects in our neighborhood. And I got to hear about a firsthand miracle (Congrats to the Grants!!!). A very blessed Christmas, truly.

Also, an update to our update, just when I was finally feeling comfortable in my church calling (Enrichment (whatever we are calling it now, RS Meeting/Activity) Leader) I get a new one. Just goes to show, Heavenly Father wants us to grow and we can't do that if we're too comfortable. First counselor in the Primary. Never been in an auxiliary presidency before, kind of nervous (which is good, I guess). The new president is wonderful and I am excited to work with her (especially since she knows what she is doing! She was the old first counselor). Shellee decided to keep the same secretary because she rocks (love you Kari!), so the new second counselor and I will be the rookies. A new adventure to give me more grey hairs (and more smiles, I am sure). I am sad to leave Relief Society though. I love my committee and doing Enrichments/Midweeks, even when they stress me out! I love the sisterhood and the girl time and the spirit of being in a room full of women who know SO much more than I do. Thank Heaven (literally) for visiting teaching and Enrichment. Heavenly Father certain has got meeting our needs checked off his lists. So grateful for that.

Glad I'll get to work with the Primary kids and their fabulous teachers (primary teachers should be nominated for sainthood). Glad I'll get to see my cute kids a little more on Sunday. Glad I still have a wonderfully supportive husband and family. Glad I have sweet friends and family who will read my blog vent sessions. Love you! Merry Christmas and Happy 2010!

It wasn't from me.....

2009-12-24T07:45:00.000-08:00

Just a heads up to my Facebook friends. If you got any messages from me in the last few days, just delete them. DO NOT DOWNLOAD anything from me!!! Evidentally, while I thought I was downloading cute pics of my friend's family from youtube, I was actually downloading a virus, which not only has been bombarding my computer with popups about (ironically) viruses, but sending porn to my friends on Facebook and infecting their computers. The best part is eventually a popup appears saying, "Hey! We'll fix all these popups you have for just $49.95! Give me your credit card number!" Do I have "idiot" tattooed across my forehead? I think Trent has the viruses finally taken care of, but I'm not taking any chances with the Facebook thing. I'll probably get ride of that account. We'll see....

Hope you are all having a very Merry Christmas Eve! Are you kids as giddy as mine? Santa's coming....TONIGHT!

Christmas Update and Card

2009-12-15T15:01:00.000-08:00

I don't like ecards for Christmas. It's a tradition to mail out an annual update with pictures. Pictures are a requirement. I like the cards, but I love the pics. It's nice to hear from family and friends we don't see all the time. I know, some people think they are annoying and loathe this holiday tradition, but I love seeing who shows up in my mailbox everyday and hanging beautiful pictures of your children on my card tree and reading all about your life and knowing my sweet friends from the past are still out there and are mostly well.
This year...I am behind. I've had a lot going on and just haven't gotten around to mailing this particular tradition off (truthfully, I haven't gotten around to mailing anything! I am dreading going to the post office). So, despite my particular objections to cold, no effort ecards: here is my Christmas post....just in case.... But I am going to suck it up and get down to that post office right away...really.....

TRENT: Still keeping overly busy in his eighth year at Xactware. He's been blessed with lots of side work. Yes Virginia, there are decent, hardworking, honest contractors out there, and I'm just lucky my husband's one of them. Word of mouth advertising has been good to us. He has mostly been finishing basements, but every once in a while he gets a project building furniture, which he loves and is extraordinarily talented at. When our ward split he was called to serve in the YM, helping with the Deacons quorum (12-13 year old boys). He and his brother have joined a photography group online and enjoy competing in the challenges and editing photos.

TYSON: Turned eight in November and got baptized the first week in December, which was a great opener to the Christmas season for our family. He is a great big brother who loves reading to Kaylee and building Legos and forts with Cameron. After two years of "patiently" waiting, he finally got a DS for his birthday (Top that Santa!), which he is obsessed with and we've had to limit severely. He is in second grade where his favorite subjects are math, lunch (aka trading card time), and recess.

CAMERON: Will turn five in January and is in his second year of preschool with Mrs. R. His teacher is fabulous and he is just starting to sound words out and read. We've been shocked by how much he has gotten out of going to school with this particular teacher. She is worth every penny and then some! He carpools with four girls from our neighborhood and loves "his girls"! He has the best imagination and can turn anything into an adventure. His favorite is building with Legos.

KAYLEE: Turned two in August. She will wrestle with the big boys and has a great time, but adores her dolls and tutus, and informed us just last week that earrings are "pretty" and she wants some. She is a great sleeper and eats more than both boys combined. She isn't really a baby anymore; she is a full-fledged little girl, which means in January we are going to try potty training!

AIMEE: Has been keeping busy with the normal mom stuff. I did Red Ribbon Week at Tyson's school for PTA this year. Thank Heaven it was only one week (and three months of prep)...but a really fun and important week. I learned how to digital scrapbook this year and have been slowly, but surely trying to catch up the kid's baby books. I love doing it and have been able to design invites for several baby showers and a few Christmas cards and birthday invitations. I got called to be the Enrichment Leader at the beginning of the year after our ward split. Several nervous breakdowns later, I am thrilled that the RS General Presidency has scrapped the midweek program and gone back to just once monthly activities. This year I am most grateful for my family and friends, carpooling, good, old-fashioned playtime that doesn't involve any form of technology, and chapstick. Oh, and I lost 110 lbs. since February. It's been a big change, but I still (sadly) have more to go and am looking forward to jumping back on the horse in January.

We are so grateful for our family and friends who so often rescue us and support our family continually. We have been nothing if not blessed. We are so grateful for the gospel and this wonderful time of year when the Savior is ever present. May it last throughout 2010!

Love you,

Aimee, Trent, Tyson, Cameron, & Kaylee

You're It!

2009-12-08T14:33:00.000-08:00

ChRisTMas TaG
1. Have you started your Christmas shopping? Started yes, finished no. Cameron is done, Kaylee is probably done, Tyson is no where near done, Trent is maybe done, neighbors are done (I should clarify. In our neighborhood a few families are awesome enought to collect food from everyone and take it to the food bank; we do this instead of neighbor gifts), but extended family...my nieces and one nephew are done, but that's it. However, I already do have Mike's birthday present for tomorrow.
2. Tell me about one of your special traditions.
My favorite is when Santa flies over on Christmas Eve and drops pajamas and a highway flare in the backyard and leaves a note telling us that he's flown over once and if we're not in bed the next time he flies over we're getting nothing for Christmas. (Santa's notes were more and more obscene the older we were. You MUST believe to recieve). And I love that we open the presents one at a time. This is my sister's answer, but these are my favorite parts too. Those and the nativity that Mom made when I was little. I love seeing it every year.
3. When do you put up your tree?
Right after Thanksgiving. Usually the Saturday after, this year it was Sunday.
4. Are you a Black Friday shopper?
Completely! I love watching the "Crazies" every year at Walmart.
5. Do you travel at Christmas or stay home?
We swap years. One in Bountiful, the next at our house with Trent's family (we do it at our house because we have room for everyone to sleepover).
6. What is your funniest Christmas memory?
I remember Grandma yelling at Brandon to stop riding the porcelain elephants they got when they lived in Indonesia and sit down and open his present. She probably threw in a, "Crimany!"
7. What is your favorite Christmas movie of all time?
I love the original Miracle on 34th Street with Natalie Woods in it. Dad always has to watch It's a Wonderful Life and Trent starts watching National Lampoons Christmas Vacation on Thanksgiving and doesn't stop until he's forced.
8. Do you do your own Christmas baking?
Duh. It's another Hannaman tradition. Piles and piles of gallon sized plastic bags filled with fudge, butterscotch cookies, and divinity (I don't like divinity, but I love that my grandma and mom and aunt always made it. I might try it this year). Plus, Trent always makes magic cookie bars (his favorite).
9. Fake or real tree?
FAKE! For sure. And it wasn't our tree that had the spiders, it was a guys at Trent's work. We just found an unhatched egg sack one year (the next year we bought the fake tree). Plus, you have to love the whole prelit thing.
10. What day does the actual panic set in to get it all done?
This year...two days before Black Friday when I realize I had zero shopping done.
11. Are you still wrapping presents on Christmas Eve?
You've got to have something to do after the kids go to bed right?
12. What is your favorite family fun time at Christmas?
We read lots of books at our house, and at Christmas we add a Christmas book every night. Of course I have that many Christmas books. Don't you?
13. What Christmas Craft do you like the best?
I love the stuff the kids bring home from school.
14. Christmas music? Yes or no, and if yes, what is your favorite song?
Big YES! I love the BNL/Sarah McLachlan version of God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen and the Judy Garland version of Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas and the Josh Groban song from Polar Express.
15. When do you plan to finish all your shopping?
Before Santa gets here.

So, if you read all this, TAG! You're it! Copy and post on your blog with your answers. Don't be a party pooper.....you know who you are. Just do it.
Merry Christmas!

"Ssshhhhh...."

2009-12-04T11:26:00.000-08:00

Just thought I'd share. I'm trying to get into the Christmas Spirit inspite of our current lack of snow. The end is my favorite because I've actually seen Cameron do this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGzQFYaUHSQ

It reminds me of high school. Memories.....

Pics at Star Mill

2009-12-04T09:20:00.000-08:00

About a month ago we went to Star Mill (antique store/junkyard) with our cute neighbors and attempted to take some family pics. They got some really adorable pics because their boys actually tried to smile and didn't pout the whole time (I suspect they had naps that day). Our kids...not so much. Trent took something like 600 pics and our beautiful children were making faces and looking everywhere but at the camera in almost all of them. We've been waiting for some snow so we could go back and get some in their Christmas clothes, but so far Mother Nature wishes to be sunny, clear, and absolutely frigid. Christmas cards may be very late this year.

I'm glad someone in our family knows how to handle a camera! Good job Trent!

This last one is my favorite. They're all smiling! A Christmas miracle!

Werewolves and Vampires, Oh My.....

2009-11-22T06:54:00.000-08:00

I went and saw New Moon with some beautiful friends yesterday. It was good. I was shocked because the first movie was so

....low budget.

Is that a good enough reason to not like a movie? Blame my dad. I always spend the whole movie admiring or disapproving of camera angles and watching for bad continuity. This is what comes from growing up with parents in the AV industry. I remember having dinner conversations about editing mistakes and continuity errors in movies when we were younger.

I actually liked this movie better than the book, though I feel slightly ashamed as a former English Lit. major to admit that. OH! Is it sacrilege to admit I didn't like a Twilight book? Sorry, I hated the second one. The whole reading I had this overwhelming desire to drive Arizona and give Stephanie Meyers a good swift kick. Seriously, how long does it take to describe a whiny, selfish, love sick teenager? I like how the movie did it: two minute montage. However, they flashed the months of the year up on the screen so you know for sure that time is passing. Please! Viewers are not that dumb. We can see the leaves changing and the snow falling outside the window. You don't have to spell it out....literally.

Plus, if you haven't read the books...they don't explain anything. Like why these werewolves walk around shirtless all the time. Loss of wardrobe is an occupational hazard when you are exploding out of your clothes every time you change into a wolf.

The best part of the movie was the audience. Every time the male leads would walk in (shirtless or not, but I think the many pec-counting opportunities didn't hurt) half the crowd would let out uncontrollable squeals and screams. The other half of the audience would giggle at the first half. It made the movie! Go see it in the theater; the audience is hilarious!

Tyson is Official!

2009-11-19T14:30:00.000-08:00

His birthday was yesterday. He's eight years old. I figured in honor of my baby turning eight, I should let you in on all the reasons he is marvelous.He is silly. He has the best sense of humor and loves to laugh.
Just look at that face! I remember when he was born, they took him out (c-section) and showed him to me and my first thought was, "He's beautiful! How am I ever going to say no to that face?" Truth be told, I frequently don't.
He is a good friend. He includes everyone. I am so proud of him when I see him include his brother and sister when his friends come over. I love it when he and Cam will play for hours with the Legos and never fight, too busy building.

He keeps us on our toes with his wit and his mischief. He is always ready for fun, but is willing to pitch in when I ask him to. I especially love it when he takes Kay and finds a nice place on the carpet to read to her. He is so sweet.

I can't believe he is eight! We are so blessed to have him in our home!

Happy Birthday!

It's like free money....but only if they pick you.

2009-11-17T16:10:00.000-08:00

Who doesn't want to save a little this season?
How about a $100 e-card to Target.com?
http://thefrugalfind.com/giveaway-target-100-egift-card/comment-page-6/#comment-3814
Check it out. I hope one of us (mostly me....) wins!

K's First Haircut

2009-11-06T08:34:00.000-08:00

K has been sporting a mullet for way too long. About half way through September, I'd had enough. The poor girl has inherited my thin hair, so it statics up if you look at her wrong...not a good look with a mini mullet. I asked Aunt Lissa to chop it all off (I am crossing my fingers that it will grow back more evenly and not so thin....fat chance!). K was pretty good about the whole thing, if not a little wiggly.
Loved the sucker. Best trick in the world.

Final result: cute little bob, however a month and a half later....I think we need to do it again! Sorry Lissa!

Halloween...Round one?

2009-11-06T07:45:00.001-08:00

Are you still scared from Halloween? It's over, we can all calm down now...oh wait, Christmas is coming (insert ear piecing scream here)! So, I would have put these later in the post, but we all know how Blogger is about moving pics around. My two new favs for Halloween books. C's class read Frank and then played a relay race game where they put a monster that looked a little like Frank back together again.

At Ty's class party, they made bat finger puppets (thank you Family Fun.com) and then I read Big Pumpkin to them (the bat is the hero) while we waited for the glue to dry. It is my definite new Halloween favorite! Give it a read.

Ty's class Halloween party was a blast. We made spider cookies, heard the scary story with all the squishy, icky props (see above pic), made bat finger puppets, played Halloween bingo, and had a spooky good time!

I almost missed Ty's Halloween Parade! They changed the time this year. Since B track doesn't show up until 9:15 AM, I figured on about 10 before they did the parade. Luckily, I happened to check the school's site...at 9:02 AM...to discover that the parade started at 9:15! We ran, from the street above the school (parking was fun), me dragging C and K and trying to pull my camera out and get it running the whole way. I literally walked in the gym and snapped this pic. We made it by the skin of our teeth! He's Ben 10...not my fav, but he's seven and it's what he wanted. He's cute, even when he wears commercially driven character wear!
C was Indiana Jones this year. I am not sure why he desired this so much. He has never seen the movies (are you kidding, I can't even watch most of them...5 words: ghosts, aliens, monkey brain soup). I think he likes the whip.

His class was so cute all dressed up!

We went to Gardner Village and did the Which Witch scavenger hunt. The boys loved it and had a great time running all over the place. If you complete the hunt, you get a cookie for 25 cents in the bakery...of course my kids don't want that cookie, they want the donuts with the Halloween sprinkles.

I had to throw this pic in. We went to a pumpkin patch for our nephew's birthday. In the middle of the corn maze, K decides she's not walking any more. This is her attempt to pout without laying on the dirt.

We made spooky ghost brownies for FHE. The night before I made brownies and then scooped the warm brownie goo into balls and froze them (thanks for the idea April!), then I let the kids spoon white chocolate over them and put the chocolate chip eyes on. Scary enough to eat!

T and I at our sweet neighbors 3rd annual Halloween Bash. T was a hunter and I was his hunting widow (lame, I know...what do you want?). We dressed up true to life this year.

More to come. The actual Halloween pics are on the good camera, and technically, I've never learned how to off load it. I just make T do it. Hope you had some happy haunting this year!

Soccer Stars!

2009-10-14T14:49:00.000-07:00

We've been running all over the valley for soccer this season with both boys playing. It hasn't been too bad with soccer stuff only three or four night a week, but I have no idea how people with three or four or five kids in soccer do it! Ty finally got the hang of it about half way through the season. He almost scored a few goals and loved playing goalie the most (probably because he didn't have to run as much). His team was called the Red Lasers!
C was on the Blue Jets (which was the Blue Dogs previously, until half way through the season). He scored his first goal and really likes soccer, though we think we might be better suited for football. He spent most of the games making "plans" with his teammates about how they would push down the other team and take the ball!
They both had so much fun! Can't wait until spring season starts!

A Hunting We Will Go....

2009-10-08T07:13:00.000-07:00

Well, not we.... We stayed home and watched Conference and hung with Grandma, Grandpa, J, and the Hursts all weekend. T went hunting with my cousins. They were frozen and muddy all weekend, but came back with two four by fours. Pretty good! Congrats to Tom and Chris who actually got to shoot the poor elk. T is bummed he didn't get a chance to kill Bambi's very large cousin, but hey, at least they got two for the group. Pretty good. And they had fun. Like I always say, "Nothing says home sweet home like a dead animal carcass on the wall."

Monkeys?

2009-10-05T21:40:00.000-07:00

Everyone has seen that picture with the monkeys doing hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil, right? This is what my kids learned during General Conference! During the Sunday Morning session their was a big thunderstorm (we were hanging out at the grandparent's home in Bountiful) and the power went out for about an hour; no satellite, no Internet, no Conference. So in between down pours, Aunt J took the kids outside for some fast pics. We got some cute shots, but this was the funniest. They were copying each other and playing peek-a-boo and this was the only shot she got where they were each doing something different. I think it's hilarious!

Diva Tantrum

2009-10-01T21:47:00.000-07:00

Tonight K was hanging out with Dad while he was vacuuming out his truck and after a while she started getting into trouble, so T sent her inside. I was in the kitchen doing homework with the boys. She came in SCREAMING! She was furious that T made her come in. I'm surprised she didn't immediately come over to the table cry to me. Instead she flopped down in the entryway on the stairs and shrieked. Then she ran into the great room, flopped down onto the floor and shrieked some more. Then back to the stairs for more screaming. Ty and I were giving each other practice spelling tests, so I was only watching her out of the corner of my eye. I think she was frustrated that she was making all this fuss and no one was really paying attention. Finally, she literally head dives back into the carpet in the great room, grabs her quilt off the floor, and.....silence. Nothing. I got up from the table to check on her. Had she hit her head on the floor or choked on something? Nope. She was asleep. Completely passed out and snoring slightly. She's such a delicate little thing.

First Day Revisited with Correct Gear!

2009-09-29T19:20:00.000-07:00

Sorry about the sideways picture. So way back at the end of July I ordered backpacks online for the boys. C's came right on time, weeks before school started. Ty's was on back order until early September. I asked him if he wanted to order something different, but he stuck to his original pick. He's a big fan of the blue camo. Two days before his back order was supposed to ship, I got another email saying the back order had been back ordered! He would have to wait another month until the end of October. Still he wanted to wait, despite his disappointment. Today it came! He was so excited. Ironically, he had on the same shirt he wore on the first day of school. Of course I took it as a sign that this momentous moment should be documented for all to see. So here's Ty's long awaited backpack...may it last at least until the end of the school year, hopefully beyond!

Last Camping Hoorah!

2009-09-28T10:41:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, among the million other things we had to accomplish over the weekend (i.e. soccer games, baby shower, birthday party, and family pictures), we also went up AF Canyon for a little overnight adventure. It rained almost the whole time. I like camping, really. I just hate the getting ready and the cleaning up. Especially the mountains of laundry that await because every single item you take camping will end up smelling like an ashtray (this from the lady that just put a fire pit in her backyard). Can you tell? T thinks he's funny! Or gross? I can't tell which?!
We went for a drive and a "picnic" (see the above pic. We just stopped at a turnout and literally tailgated lunch) on the way home and wore K out.

Ty loves the out doors and can't wait to go camping again. He asks all the time when we are going to set up the tent in the backyard.

C had to show me how he could climb up and down this rock by HIMSELF about a dozen times. So proud!

So since I went on this trip, I don't have to go again for at least another year, right?

BearWorld & BYU-I

2009-09-08T07:52:00.000-07:00

Chelsea (my cousin Tami's oldest daughter) came to visit for a few days on her way to her first semester at BYU-Idaho. Saturday the kids and I met Mom, Lis, Jen, and Chels at Gardner Village. The boys went home with Mom and the crew and K and I went home to meet T and work on the yard all weekend (which actually didn't happen, but I got the basement sorted!). First stop was the beautiful gardens at BYU-I, where the boys made friends with all the ladybugs. C is pointing to the one on Ty's nose.

Just chillin'.

Dad, C, Ty, Chels, and Mom. Good luck Chelsea! Have a great semester!

Ty convinced Chels to go on a few rides with them at Bear World. C said, "It was totally AWESOME!" He really used all caps and everything.

Nap time at Bear World.

My favorite pic from their adventure. They had so much fun with Grandma and Grandpa. Thanks guys!

Back to School!

2009-09-02T13:55:00.000-07:00

C went back to preschool yesterday! I can't believe he is so big. He is back with Mrs. R. for the second year. We love her to pieces, and we're excited for the year to start. Almost half of his class are kids from our ward, so we are in good company with lots of friends. Ty started almost two weeks ago. He is also with a Mrs. R, who seems like she is going to be great. He has become a very good reader over the summer. He helps me out all the time reading stories to K and C. We've had a little homework this week, which only continues to show us what a math whiz he is.
We also put our back lawn in a few weeks ago thanks to some very nice neighbors and friends. Thank you! We are planning on working hard over the Labor Day weekend, and hope to get a good portion of the backyard finished. I'll post pics later.

Playing Catch Up...

2009-08-12T15:37:00.000-07:00

The last few weeks have been hectic to say the least and blogging has been way down on the list of things to do. So, here are the top ten from the last month:

10-Ty finished his reading class and is on his way to being a super reader. He has been helping me out a lot lately by reading stories to K and C.

9-I pinched that ridiculous spot in my back (AGAIN!). It has taken about three weeks, one trip to the ER, T taking three days off work, and one really nice physical therapist neighbor (Thanks again Jeremy!), but I am finally starting to feel better. It probably wouldn't have taken this long, but you know me, I'm a klutz. I have fallen twice and re injured myself (once while battling weeds in the backyard, and once over my cute little neighbor (sorry Kira!)).

8-Speaking of the backyard, someday soon, we're getting grass....REALLY. Next weekend! Pray for nice weather!

7-T and the deacons have been all over the place: scout camp, bike rides, and even a few runs. T is loving it. He gets his runs and rides in and does YM all the the same time; what a multitasker!

6-Kids all got to do swim lessons this year. The boys loved it. K and I did a mom and tot class. It took almost the entire two weeks for her to get over her fear of the other parents and kids in the class.

5-We had some very good experiences teaching our kids about fasting and praying for others.

4-T and I spoke for the first time in about five years in Sacrament meeting. We did it with our usual flair. I rambled for way too long and the fire alarm went off about two minutes into T's talk!

3-C brought the total ER visits to 12 (or 13, I've lost count). Four stitches in his chin when he tried to get marshmallows out of the pantry. He didn't want to ask Mom because he knew what the answer would be.

2-Oquirrh Mountain Temple Open House with the Robinsons and Hursts (see pic).

1-K is 2! Our baby is an official toddler. How did that happen so fast?!

HAPPY SUMMER!

It's nearly over....

Not So Terrible Twos

2009-08-12T13:27:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my baby girl is two years old! She has been a little firecracker from the very beginning. We can't believe how fast she has grown and how much she is learning every day.

She's big enough to know how to blow out her own candles!

K picked out this doll that crawls and giggles months ago. Saturday, T wrapped it and put it up on the mantle, and every time we walked by it, it would giggle despite the layers of paper around it. Each time it went off, K would get excited and say, "OOO, baby!" and point to the package. No fooling this little girl!

Tea time with Aunt L. K is thrilled to finally have some certifiable "girl toys" around here. For the last few days her favorite thing is to wrap up her new baby in her new blanket, put on her fancy smanchy shoes, and push the baby around in the stroller.

Has anyone discovered a way to keep these kids from growing up so fast?!? Anyone?

Happy Birthday America!

2009-07-04T14:10:00.000-07:00

For the 4th, we came up to Grandma and Grandpa R's house for a visit with a very full schedule planned.
We spent Friday night doing confetti bottles and snaps on the deck.

We had yummy popsicles. These are new, mini popsicles, the perfect size for little kids, and are supposedly "slow melting." Why didn't I think of that?!

Eventually, all the gun powder things ran out and we turned to bubbles.

Do your kids do this?

2009-06-24T15:55:00.001-07:00

Nope. This isn't an ad for hand lotion or sunscreen. It's the "extra" stuff I found in my shopping bags when I got home from the store today. K was "helping" and kept putting the little extra things by the checkout on the conveyor belt. I kept putting them back. Evidently, I missed a few of her surprises, which makes me mad because checkout boy saw me put the other things back. Thanks a bunch kid who probably isn't paid enough by the Walmart cooperation to care! At least I had actually paid for it this time. Last time we came home with something extra, we had to have the thievery talk with Ty and then return the items to the store. Fun! Anybody need some sanitizing hand lotion with cooling sensation?

Celery Obsession

2009-06-16T09:35:00.000-07:00

I know that this will come as a shock, especially to my parents because as a kid I wouldn't eat soup if there was celery in it, but I have developed an obsession with celery. That's right, good ole Apium graveolens, aka celery.

My friend told me she hasn't seen me without a piece of celery or an apple in my hand since January. This is not entirely true, it feels true, but it's not. Seriously, what is more crunchy and yummy than celery? Potato chips. Right, like that's in my future anytime soon. Did you know it takes more to burn off a piece of celery than it's original caloric intake, so celery is actually a negative calorie food! This is fabulous! It's a miracle.

We are currently going through about 4 or 5 bunches a week, which is kind of excessive, but it's not just me....C and K like their celery too. I always keep a glass of celery sticks in the fridge for when someone (namely me) gets the munchies. This morning I go to retrieve a mid morning snack, only to discover an empty glass. Do you love it as much as I do when your family leaves empty boxes and bottles in the pantry or refrigerator?

Now I am having a major craving and there is no celery in this house! What is a girl to do? Well, if your this girl, you go complain about it on your blog and then head to the store. I need my miracle food fix, and K needs some diapers....

Backyard Beat

2009-06-10T10:15:00.000-07:00

Remember way back in March, when T and Uncle B and Grandpa J built the deck floor, and all we had was our lovely "concrete," rocks with a little dirt in between? You think I'm joking, but seriously, when we put the front yard in last fall, the first guy we hired to trench the sprinklers quit, and the second guy broke a trencher machine before it all got done.

Now we have dirt! I know this isn't the most exciting news for most people, but in our neighborhood, dirt is good, as opposed to what you have before your yard goes in. For us, dirt means progress. K's new favorite thing is eating on the deck, and since the railing isn't in yet, and considering her track record....we keep the deck door dead bolted. Notice the pretty furniture and umbrella, that was my Mother's Day present this year (thanks guys!).

The gorgeous gravel-filled hole is for our fire pit, as is the rock pile...pretty...someday... soon. It looks gray in the pic, but really the stone is different shades of brown. We are so excited that our trees are in and things are really starting to take shape.

Pretty dirt! Now if it would just stop raining so the sprinklers could get done...and the deck rail, and the stairs...and the path, and the fire pit...and the flower beds, and the curbing...and the rock around the deck pillars...and....you get the picture. Aren't projects fun!

This is the remains of our robin's nest. See the paper shred in between the lights? The kids loved watching the mom and dad fly back and forth with worms. T "loved" the bird poop dripped down the stucco. About a week ago, I walked through the kitchen and noticed a little gray bird on the deck. The two baby robins came out of the nest and spent about three days in the backyard before they disappeared.

More pics to come...eventually, we'll get grass! Who knew sod could be so exciting?!

Birthday Bash at the Zoo

2009-06-05T09:22:00.001-07:00

T's birthday was May 23, and since he is the most wonderful and spectacular husband and father around, the kids and I decided to take him to one of his favorite places. He loves to play with his camera, and what place is more perfect to shoot pics that the ZOO!

Remember this fountain? I think it was here when I was a kid!

The Elephant Encounter was our favorite!

The kids wanted to make a wish in the donation pond before the bird show. Of course, on the way back to our seats, K tripped and faceplanted into the concrete stairs. Blood everywhere and people freaking out and asking if we wanted a medic or a first aid kit. Nope, we came prepared, we do this ALL the time.

Strike a pose!
Happy birthday Dad!

Memorial Day in the ER

2009-05-26T20:35:00.000-07:00

Do you know how busy the ER gets on holidays? I do. Yep. I know, shocking, isn't it. A member of my family in the ER?! If you are at all surprised by this...you haven't talked to me in a LONG time. Keep in mind, this list doesn't include the thousands of near misses we've experienced. Let's reminisce, shall we?

1. A in ER in middle of night for infection after c-section with baby #1 (aka Ty).
2-4. T in ER for various construction related accidents (i.e. nail through thumb, nail through foot, nail through ear, etc.).
5. Ty in ER with RSV when he was two.
6. C and the papershredder (see previous posts, no one wants to rehash this one).
7. K with broken femur at 5 months.
8. K with broken nose at 9 months.
9. K with stitches in her eyebrow at 14 months (do we detect a pattern?).
10. T breaks ribs biking at Sundance.
And now, our latest addition:
11. C comes careening out onto my parents deck at breakneck speed and trips into the little kid table. He caught the corner of it right in the middle of his forehead. Luckily, no stitches this time. Just good old super glue and steri-strips.

I think I have figured out the problem. You see, I am a klutz, a big one. I married a daredevil; he'll try anything once. This means our children are fearless and clumsy, a dangerous combo to be sure. :)

HCg Q & A:

2009-05-22T17:20:00.000-07:00

Okay, I've never had that many emails and comments about a post before. So, to answer some questions.

HCg is a pregnancy hormone, but it doesn't make you feel pregnant. It's the hormone that makes your body feed baby first and you second, so fat gets burned first, not stored, and you use up your "reserves."

Second question, nope, no pics yet. I hated getting my pic taken in college when I was sort of skinny, I like it even less now. We'll see, maybe later.

Thirdly, while I admit that HCg is good whether you are trying to lose 15 lbs. or 300 lbs., it is not for everyone. It can be discouraging, especially for women because during the mid to end section your weight will tend to wavier up and down slightly or you will stall. It stinks, but I realized that even though the scale wasn't dropping, the inches still were. Also, you really have to be truly ready to change your eating completely and STICK TO IT! Commitment is key. NO CHEATING, not even a little, or it doesn't work. I prefer to think of it as, "I won't eat that," instead of, "I can't eat that." Plus, even if you just want to lose that last stubborn 15 from the baby or whatever, you still have to complete the entire course. You would probably lose that in the first two weeks, but you would still have to finish the course (another 4 weeks) or it will come right back. However, it is fast. I would much rather do this over 6-8 months than try the traditional 2-3 years it would probably take me.

Fourth question, a little personal, you know who you are... Yes, T loves it. Nothing like massive weight loss to make your hubby remember how cute you are! :) He has been very supportive. He makes dinner a lot because I have days where I really don't want to look at other food. Plus, I would never let him buy clothes for me before because it was just too embarrassing. I am at a size now where I am okay with it. Not thrilled, but okay, and I'll get there.

Fifth question. Yes, you can gain it all back, if you revert to starches and fats and all that lovely stuff. Eventually, I will be able to eat what I want, but I also know what it will do to me and how hard I will have to work to burn it off. And that M&M is just not worth is to me anymore.

Good luck! Let me know if you try it, or what other stuff has worked for you! Thanks for all the support. I love you guys too.

The Incredible Shrinking Me

2009-05-22T09:11:00.000-07:00

So, I've had about a dozen people ask me in the last little while what I am doing to lose weight, so here's the scoop:

I am doing HCg. I know, it totally sounds crazy, but it works. I've had two cousins do it (one is a nurse) and they look great. One wanted to lose about 30 lbs., the other about 20 lbs. I look better, but not great yet. To sum up, you give yourself injections everyday, eat very specific foods (only 500 calories a day, but a lot of food, veggies, lean protein, and good ole water), and lose on average a lb. a day.

When I first started, I was losing between 4-6 lbs. in a day, which is great motivation to not cheat. The down side is it can be really expensive, so shop around and find a DOCTOR who does it. I've seen some places that charge $1000 a round! My doctor was $495 the first round, and $100 off each additional round. The $ is also a motivation for me not to cheat (I don't can't afford to waste it).
It sounds scary, but as long as you don't cheat, it works; plus it really teaches you what you should and shouldn't be eating, and how your body works with food. I'm on my second round and I will definitely do one more. It's a hormone, so your body levels off and won't allow you to lose more than you should. A round lasts about 47 days and you have to take about a 4-6 week break inbetween so you don't become immune to the hormone.

I know, you're thinking you would starve to death on 500 calories a day, but it really is a lot of food and the hormone injections keep you from being hungry. I actually have to remind myself to eat, because if you don't get in your calories and water it doesn't work. The best part is you lose weight evenly all over your body, so no weird, uneven fat places, and you lose every day (as long as you don't cheat, have I said that enough times?). Since mid-January, I've lost 66 lbs. I'm hoping to hit 80 before my last injection in two weeks. You lose a little less each round, so I'm hoping I'll only do one more round, but we'll see.

It is not an easy fix. It is hard and temptation is all around, but it is working for me. You just have to be completely committed and ready to change. :) So drink lots of water and eat your veggies!

Not one for bike riding, but.....

2009-05-22T07:32:00.000-07:00

I could totally change my mind. This is cool!

Click on it for me! I never win anything, but you never know. Maybe today is my lucky day, or possibly yours....

6th pic in 6th folder

2009-05-21T16:44:00.000-07:00

Okay Roseanne, here you go. This is not exactly the most pleasant topic, so if your squeamish, read no further. My 6th pic file contains pics of C after he put his hand in a paper shredder. He was 18 months old, and nope, I'm not even close to kidding, A PAPER SHREDDER. It was horrible and traumatic, and he cried every time someone in scrubs came near him for the next year. Had I known it was possible to put him out while the doctor put over thirty stitches in his three tiny fingers, I would have. It took more than an hour with me and two other nurses holding him down. He had to have the mitt for about a week. C still pulls on his fingers every now and then and says they feel funny. His fingernails are damaged and he has some scars, but we were very lucky. His fingers are all there and they all work. Ahhhhh, memories..... So take the challenge! Look in your 6th folder and pull out the 6th picture and post it! See what you come up with!

Discovery Gateway Giveaway!

2009-05-20T10:43:00.001-07:00

Check it out. We love Discovery Gateway!
http://www.becausebabiesgrowup.com/

Rise and Shine!

2009-05-19T20:34:00.001-07:00

I am still laughing! This afternoon I asked Ty to go get something for me and he said he couldn't because his legs were asleep. Without missing a beat, C hops up, runs over to Ty, grabs his knees and yells, "Wake up legs! It's daytime!" My boys definitely keep us smiling.

Vaseline Update

2009-05-14T09:32:00.000-07:00

So the greasey girl is once again greaseless. She's blue now, but at least the Vaseline is gone. I don't know what I am going to do now that she can get into literally every cupboard in the house, short of leashing her to the couch or something! So the Vaseline washed out after about three days. The morning I really felt like it was out, she climbed back onto the counter, got back into the cupboards and this time, raided the food coloring. Blue dye on the counter, on the cabinets, on the calendar, the wall, and of course, on the girl. Her khaki pants are no long with us. May they rest in peace in the landfill. Pictures to come...

I vaguely remember a song about Vaseline....

2009-05-05T07:56:00.000-07:00

So....did you know that Vaseline is almost impossible to wash out of hair? Yesterday, C and K were eating lunch before C went to school. I ran upstairs to flat iron my hair really quick. After about two minutes C comes upstairs and tells me that K has white stuff all over. I run downstairs expecting flour or sugar or salt everywhere (we all know K likes to climb in the pantry). Nope, nothing in the pantry. Just K with a bar stool pushed up to the counter (did I mention that K knows how to climb up on the bar stools now!) next to our fridge with all the cupboards open and a jar of Vaseline next to her. I wish I'd taken a pic, but I literally had about five minutes to get her cleaned up and get C to school. It was everywhere! I am not supposed to touch stuff like Vaseline right now (which I will not be explaining in this post), so I was scraping the goo off her with paper towels and trying to get it off the walls, the counter, the fridge without getting it on me! Ahhh.....good times, good times..... Anyway, I washed her hair in the sink, ran C to school, K to my neighbors, and then ran to help Ty's teacher at school. Two hours later I come back to get K and her hair still looks wet, but greasy wet. Ugh! I washed it three times yesterday to no avail, once this morning....I'll let you know how it goes.....

Defying Gravity and the Odds

2009-04-22T07:20:00.000-07:00

I am completely "green" (ha, get it? Punny, eh) with envy in honor of Earth Day, of course. My sister won the lottery for fourth row Wicked seats yesterday. She was going to call me because she couldn't find her husband, and then he showed up (thanks a ton Mike!). I am not completely obsessed with Wicked, but close, and I would love to go to that show. Actually, I have sworn for the last 2-3 years that when it came I was going NO MATTER WHAT. But life happens and getting tickets didn't.

If you don't know what the lottery is: A day-of-performance ticket drawing for a limited number of seats is held daily. Each day, 2 hours prior to show time people who present themselves at the box office have their names placed in a drawing drum and then thirty minutes later, names are drawn for a limited number of seats at $25 each, cash only.

This is the second time Lis has won lottery tickets to Wicked (she got them before in San Fransico), but then she is also willing to go stand in line everyday with 400 other people. Hope you guys had fun! No Super Broadway Fan deserves it more than you!

"This is the life!"

2009-04-15T08:59:00.000-07:00

It is Spring Break here and we have headed to the grandparents house, because vacations are more fun with Grandma and Grandpa, and aunts and uncles. The missionaries came to Easter dinner too, and about 3 minutes before they knocked on the door, K threw up all over the floor and her Easter dress. Nice, eh. So, we have been sick all vacation. I have a cold and Ty is throwing up too. Good news is whatever this is (flu, stomach virus, etc.), it doesn't last too long.

So, now that everyone is feeling a little better, we got out of the house and out of the rain, and off the Discovery Gateway.
We spent about five hours there yesterday!

Fun and learning all at the same time. We are multi-taskers!

So much fun, they got all worn out, kind of. I took this pic of them asleep in the car and noticed that Ty looked like he was smiling. I started to talk about how tricky Ty is to Grandma and he started giggling! He was totally faking! We went to McD's for lunch on Tuesday and C ran up from playing, sat down and put his head on my shoulder and said, "Mom, this is the life..." I have to agree.

Easter Festivities

2009-04-15T08:20:00.000-07:00

We had a jam packed Easter weekend this year. Saturday morning we went to our city egg hunt. I will post pics later. Saturday afternoon a friend reminded me that I actually had to boil and dye eggs that day. Oops! I bought the eggs and dye. I had planned to do it that morning, I just spaced it. So, Saturday night we went to town coloring eggs. K thinks Easter eggs are balls; she likes to thrown them. C really got into decorating this year. He likes to plop the eggs into the dye and splash it all over. Ty helped for a while, then lost interest and left Mom and Dad to finish up. Typical.
Easter morning the kids dug into their baskets, loving the candy the most, but the cheap-o kites were a definite favorite. And the "Fly Guy" books!

Ty was just glad the Easter Bunny gave in and finally brought him some Pokemon cards. We don't let them watch these cartoons, but the kids play with the cards at school during lunch.

K got a singing teapot and was "sharing" it with everyone.

"Ball!"

Flower Power!

2009-04-08T12:02:00.000-07:00

K has this bump out in her room, perfect for a window seat. So, T built one in before we painted. A few weeks ago, Grandma C made these adorable flower balls to hang in her room, and they totally complete the window seat.
Maybe someday I'll actually make a cushion for this bench....maybe.... Thanks Mom! They look beautiful. And yes, K has climbed up to try and pull them down. We knew she would!

Girlie Girl Hair

2009-04-08T10:41:00.000-07:00

I am delving into uncharted territory and actually trying to do something with K's mullet. You would think that growing up in a house full of girls, I might know something about doing hair. But let's face facts, I'm a tomboy at heart (much to T's dismay), and hair and make-up have never really been my thing. I found some rather cute and informative sites on how to do baby girl hair. I swear, you really can find anything on the Internet. Her hair actually didn't turn out too bad for a first attempt, so of course I have to share. This is her running away from me while I try to take a picture. I know you've been there too.... C tried to help keep her still by making silly faces.
K joined in.....

TA DA! I know...you are all very impressed. Not perfect, but not too shabby for a first try.

Right after the pic, she immediately started rubbing her head into the couch. Little girls with just fixed hair are drawn to static-filled couches in the same way that gravity is an unchanging and irresistible force. By the time she wakes up from her nap her cute knots will be gone, but at least I have the pictures.

Apron Giveaway!

2009-04-04T08:24:00.000-07:00

Check out these adorable aprons! You can win one if you comment on her blog before Tuesday! http://www.epicureanstyle.typepad.com/ Good Luck!

Bi-polar Mother Nature

2009-04-01T07:32:00.001-07:00

I have often said that Mother Nature is a little bi-polar where we live. During the Fall we have beautiful Fall foilage, but it's 100 degrees outside. In the Winter, it freezing and grey, but won't snow for weeks at a time. And Spring....It's 60 and sunny one day and this the next. Mother Nature's attempt at an April Fool's joke. Later today I'm sure (wink, wink) that the sun will come and shout, "April Fool's!" T got me good this morning. I was thinking about the snow, not about April 1st. He sent me a text saying that he had just barely gotten to work (this was about 8:30 AM, he usually gets to work about 7 AM), because the right side of his truck had fallen apart (that should have tipped me off right there). My first thought was that he had been standing out in the cold and snow for an hour and a half. Then he said he wasn't sure what we were going to do, which, of course, made me really worried. So, I called him (emergencies shouldn't be handled through texting), and he strung me along a little and then told me it was April Fool's Day. Duh! Good one, Love.