Four (Responding to a tag)

So, I am a stalker follower of Becky's blog and today I noticed that she tagged me to post...Good for me because I am rapidly losing the month of February and I put on my bucket list that I was going to blog at least 2 times/month...So - here is post #1 for February...

Four:

Four things that I am obsessed with lately:

1.  Trying to get my kids under control...they are crazy little lunatics right now...not sure if it is just that they are stir-crazy or what, but enough already!

2.  Reading...Reading is my escape from, well....everything...I have been reading a lot the past few months...probably because my kids are driving me crazy!

3.  Fabric remnant bins...you find the cutest little pieces of cheap fabric in the remnant bins!  Perfect for little skirts or shorts.  Not for me - for my kids...I couldn't squeeze my left toe into a fabric remnant!

4.  Thinking of new ways to make my little house feel bigger...it isn't working...yet.  I have a lot of ideas that I am anxious to implement...I think I am going to get rid of all the furniture and we can just sit on cushions on the floor...that should make it feel very spacious, don't you think???

4 Things I'm Good At:

1.  Cooking.  I am a good cook.  Not afraid to say it.  I really enjoy cooking, it relaxes me.  Baking really makes me feel happy, but I have to be careful, because if I bake too much, then my jeans don't fit and then I am sad.

2.  Knowing my body.  When something is going wrong - I usually know.  A few weeks ago, I just felt awful.  No energy, wanted a nap everyday, depressed, etc.  I decided to go have my thyroid checked and sure enough, I needed a medication increase.  If I had waited until my regularly scheduled appointment, the problem would have been a lot worse.  I am happy to report that after a few weeks on the new dose, my energy is coming back and I feel SO much better.

3.  My job.  I enjoy my little piddly part-time job that helps pay the bills.  I've done it over 7 years now (closed loans) and I am really good with the people.  The break is nice too...I also like how it allows me to be with the kids as much as possible...Some days that is more of a blessing than others ;)

4.  Telling people what to do Giving Advice.  Yes, I am bossy.  I read a lot and I have been through a lot and I research things out.  So, if you come to me with a problem, or just need to vent - I am a jack-of-all-trades at helping out.

4 Things I'm Looking Forward to This Year:

1.  School starting in the fall...whoops, did I say that out loud?  I mean, for goodness sakes, it isn't even spring yet...I have to admit that I really dread the dog days of summer when my kids are bored out of their minds and can't go outside because it is too hot...I think that the start of school is a relief to all of us!

2.  Spring.  I love Spring.  I want to plant flowers and plants.  I hate how dead everything is right now...My house needs some color on the outside, but I have to wait until it is warm...

3.  Ashleigh being completely potty trained.  We are almost there...so close.  A few accidents here and there, nothing major.  We haven't bought pull-ups in weeks.  This will be the 1st time in over 12 years that we haven't had to buy diapers...

4.  A trip.  I don't know where we are going - Disney World will probably not be for us this year since they are being super stingy with the discounts (the only way we could afford it before)...But, we are going somewhere, even if it is only for a few days.

4 Foods I Eat the Most:

1.  Mexican Food.  Love it, love it, love it...Especially the shrimp quesadillas that I have been making lately, and chips and good salsa...Mmmmm, Mmmmm, Mmmmmmm...

2.  Fruit.  I am really on a fruit kick right now.  Pineapple (even though it makes my throat itch), mandarin oranges and the little cuties, strawberries, etc.

3.  Soup.  Usually I make a crockpot of some type of soup every week.  It stretches the budget and feeds us for a few days so that I don't have to cook dinner every night.  Taco Soup, White Chicken Chili, and homemade chicken noodle are my "go to" soups.

4.  Celery.  The past few weeks I have been craving celery like it is going out of style...Can't get enough.  I looked it up and found out that if you are working out more (which I am) then you crave celery because your body needs more sodium...Interesting.

5.  And I had to add chocolate.  I don't eat it every day, or all the time...but I have to admit, if I am stressed or having a bad day, a piece of Dove Chocolate is just what the doctor ordered!

4 Things I Want to Teach My Kids:

1.  To be self-sufficient.  Nuff said.

2.  To be good citizens and respect others.

3.  To love Heavenly Father first, and have a relationship with Him.

4.  To clean up after themselves.  Sure wish this one would happen soon!

4 Things I'd Do if I Were a Billionaire:

1.  Pay off all my bills.

2.  Pay off my parents house so my dad could retire, and send them to Scotland and Ireland...my mother's dream.

3.  Take my entire family on vacation - no spending limits.

4.  Help others in any way that I can.  Paying off people's layaway's at Christmas like the people in the news last Christmas, helping people make a difference in the world.

4 People I Tag:  

I think that there are a few people (maybe two) that read my blog...oh, and no fair putting both Kristen and I as one person, Becky...that way we can't tag each other!

1.  So, I'm still gonna tag Kristen, because I beat her on completing this assignment!

2.  Jen (Yes little Miss Mayberry Jen, that's you!)

3.  Lisa (If you are reading this...it has been WAY too long since you blogged, girl!)

4.  Lois (well, if you had a blog...you really need one - way too many cute grandkid stories!)

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!

A letter to my children...

Dear Children,

There are a few things that have been going on at our house lately that make me crazy...and laugh like a loon...Someday, when you read this, I'm sure you won't remember any of it...documenting for posterity's sake.

To my #1 hoarder...we cleaned your room again today for the 3rd time this month.  This time, we went through all the drawers and refolded the clothes.  There ARE better ways to spend a lovely Sunday afternoon, son!  Please refrain from saving every empty wrapper, baggie from your snack, tag from your new clothes, etc.  Those shows that we have had you watch are REAL!  Love you tons....hope next month goes better!

Dear, sweet/funny/exasperating child...Your new habit of putting plastic baggies over your head is really freaking us out!  We've locked all of the big ones up now so that you won't suffocate yourself.  I know you watched that space movie last week, and are just trying to recreate helmets (very creative, by the way) but it is giving ME grey hair...I think, under all my roots...Oh, and it is also not acceptable to put plastic bags over your stuffed animals' heads.  They need air to breathe, too...Just ask Woody from Toy Story!

To my Contrary Princess...Rolling your eyes and stomping around whenever I ask you to do something is NOT working for me.  For crying out loud, you are 8, not 13...put on your big girl panties and deal with it!  Trust me, things will only get better from here! ;)  Oh, and word to the wise...if you help more and complain less, I will like you a lot more and will do more fun things with you...got it??? Good.

To Queen picky...Where do I even begin?  Asking for a snack before dinner is over is not in your best interest...Your fascinating display this evening of spreading salad dressing on all of your lettuce leaves, then sucking it off was really special...Thanks for that!  Anyway, if you don't start eating something besides fruit and chicken nuggets soon, I'm not sure if you will be the fairest in the land...girl gotta have some nutrition to be beautiful!

To Princess Sweet Pea...While you are showing the signs of independence, I love that you still want to "hold" me when you go to sleep at night...You have issues of your own, but watching you discover the world is a beautiful thing...Oh, and last night when you wouldn't let me go potty because I was holding you, and 5 minutes later asked me if I had "peed in my pants", I realized that you are definitely related to all the rest of my little hellions!

Love you all - hope this week brings about some progress and some new/exciting/not so dangerous issues...

Love,

Mom

One of those days...

Some days make you want to scream, don't they???

Today has been one of those days...it started out with the dog peeing on the floor of the boys' room.  Yuck.  This single event had the power to make us late.  For everything.  Threw breakfast at the kids, shoved them out the door, jumped in the car for yet another long trek out to Eagleville.  We were actually barely on time for Alyssa to go to school - small victory!

Went and worked out - that was good - made me feel like a rock star that I can do a resistance of 10 and most of the "New Years Resolution" crowd beginners around me could barely do a 1.  I know, mean, but it made me feel good about how far I have come...

Anyway, ran a bunch of errands - decided to go to lunch at one of my favorite places "Taco Express" (soon to be renamed Oscar's Taco Shop, since they are related)...Took Ashleigh (who is potty training) to the bathroom a zillion times.

Then, Kristen and I went to Sam's Club to renew our membership.  We were able to save a little money and get a business membership, due to my job...we walked around for a bit - about 1/2 an hour, and checked out.

Clay met me in the parking lot to get his lunch from my car.  And then, my husband, who is the person who probably wouldn't notice if I stood on the street corner with my entire body painted neon orange said, "What is on your pants???"  Um.  I don't know.  What does it look like?  I am afraid to look.  "Well, poop.  It looks like poop." 

Oh man.  I had been walking around Sams for over 1/2 an hour and I had something nasty on the back of my pants?  Kristen - I owe you one!  I sneaked a look.  "Yup.  It looked like poop.  But, we determined that I must have sat in some nasty looking refried beans at lunch.  Clay sponged me off (Bless him) and I continued on my errands.

Later on, we were on our way back from the eye doctor getting #1's new glasses.  We had 3 children screaming at us.  Like banshees.  It was awful, couldn't even drown them out with loud music.  So, I did what every other self-respecting parent would do.  I pulled over to the side of a country road.  Pulled out my book, and told them that we would be sitting there until they stopped.  At first, I don't think that they believed me.  But after 5 minutes, when I was still reading my book, and it was getting darker and they were getting hungrier, they decided to shut their pieholes.

We continued on our way.  Only to have another tantrum at home.

So, now I have a headache.  And need chocolate.  And a vacation.  From my kids.  And my house.  And winter.  And bills.  And doctor appointments which create more bills.

I think that I am going to bed early tonight.  With a bag of chocolate chips and a pile of new library books....Pure bliss!

Double Baptism...

Emma and Reagan turned 8 this week, on November 3rd...we chose to baptize them on Friday evening, November 4th...

Clay and the twins before the baptism

Becoming a young lady before our eyes!

As with any major event, stress was a constant companion...couldn't have done it without the help of my family, yet again!  Thank goodness I learned from Zach's baptism and it went more smoothly this time...It also helped that I didn't just give birth (the case 2 weeks before Zach's baptism - and I was on painkillers!)...

Me with my miracles!

Anyway, we have two brand, spanking new members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in our home.  It is a wonderful, scary thing to be parents...Things went pretty well - Reagan had a few key moments, including stepping into the cold water and trying to get back out, then capping it off with "I'm gonna die" right before Clay dunked him under!  Gotta love him.

So handsome in his suit!

We sure love these kids.  As their Aunt Kristen mentioned in her talk, we prayed for them for years and years...having them come into our family was nothing short of a miracle.

Congratulations on your baptism and confirmation, Emma Elizabeth and Reagan Michael...We love you so much and are so proud of you.

Our "little" family

The Happiest Place on Earth...(vacation part 1)

This is the first of probably several vacation posts...too much to cram into one blog!

Labor Day weekend, we headed back to our favorite place...Disney World.  We went last year and had an awesome time, so we decided to do it all again...We didn't go alone this time - My sister Karen, her husband, Adam, and their son, Campbell also came along...

The drive is super long, but it is well worth it, once we get there.  We hit quite a few snags this time...Ashleigh was really sick that morning, Kristen ended up saving the day and taking her to the doctor for me...she also cleaned out our car for the trip, kept Ashleigh all day, and finished some bows for the girls so that I could finish packing...the biggest snag was- my van, which has a ton of cargo space, was benched for this trip - it had to stay behind at the Dodge dealership for over two thousand dollars worth of repairs...we missed the space, but were so blessed that my parents had a van that we could use - that got us there safely...it also has better gas mileage than our van, so that helped the budget a little bit!

On the way, Clay looked into the backseat and found that Miss Troublemaker (aka Ashleigh) had gotten into my purse and painted herself with my lip gloss...Apparently, a 12 hour drive was a bit much to ask of this 2 year old!

Ashleigh's war paint

We left on a Thursday afternoon and drove all night.  We slept a few hours and then drove the next morning to the Orlando Temple.  We visited the distribution center for some "supplies" and took a few pics...

 

Orlando, FL temple

 

Reagan wouldn't cooperate

Again, he didn't cooperate - but the rest of us look okay!

 After the temple, we went to lunch at a very overpriced McDonald's, then checked into our hotel.....

 To BE Continued...

Happy Birthday, Alyssa!

Okay.  I suck.  Alyssa's birthday was actually on September 19th.  What can I say?  It has been a rough month!  I was sick for most of September with a nasty sinus/bronchitis thing, and I finally feel better now.

But, enough about me...

Minnie Mouse cake that was a labor of love...

She wore her new outfit to school on her actual birthday...

Our little Miss Alyssa turned 4 this year.  Where does the time go?  I am amazed at how much faster my kids birthdays come around than my own did when I was a kid...Things that make you go Hmmmmm....

Anyway, Alyssa is BIG!  Well, not compared to other 4 year olds, really...but, she is so big to us!  She just started school and is learning so darn much it is amazing.  She still has a major diva attitude like she always has - but, she is learning and growing.  I'm pretty proud of her.

Here's the loot!

For Alyssa's birthday, she got a tricycle and a little miniature Beauty and the Beast castle thing that she absolutely loves.  (Craigslist is an awesome resource!)  Grandma and Grandpa gave her a new fleece Cinderella blanket that has completely overtaken my Tinkerbell quilt that I made her last year...She got a super cute outfit from Aunt Kristen and a Belle doll from Aunt Karen...In other words, she hauled....again!

Modeling her new blanket

Saying Goodbye to an Old Friend...

A few days ago, my mom called me and said that their dog was acting like she had suffered a stroke.  She couldn't walk, was having accidents, was shaking, etc.  Belle was over 15 years old - 112 dog years.  Years ago, when Clay and I were first married, several of us went to the pound to try to "win" a small dog in a lottery.  They had to pull a number because so many people wanted a small dog.  I happened to be visiting from Utah that weekend and went along, to "up" the numbers - so we would have more of a chance to win her.

Wouldn't you know it, I won the dog.  And instantly wanted her for myself!  I reluctantly left her with my parents and over the years, many people have offered for her.  Pretty much any one of us kids would have taken her in a minute if my parents hadn't wanted her.

Time marches on, and Belle grew older, as we all must do.

We have been expecting her to leave us for a while now, but we were all really hoping that she would go in her sleep...a fitting end for a good pet.

It wasn't to happen, and today, the difficult decision was made to help Belle pass over to the other side.

Clay went over this afternoon to help dig the hole in the rocky ground of Mom and Dad's property.  When the kids came home from school, they wondered where he was.  I chose to tell them that Belle was really sick and old and was going to die today.  Dad was over helping to dig a hole so that she could be buried.

The kids took it pretty well, then Emma decided that she wanted to say "goodbye" before Belle went to live with Heavenly Father.  Knowing that Kristen was taking her kids over for the same purpose, I piled them into the car and we went to pay our respects.

I'm not sure what I expected - but it was evident when we arrived that Belle really did not have much more time - she was very disoriented and lay very still.  The kids went to say goodbye and pet her.  Emma said something like, "Goodbye Belle.  Have fun with Heavenly Father.  I hope you have a happy ending!"  Mom kind of grimaced and said, "Gee - I hope I have a happy ending!"

I came into the room and said her name, and darned if the old girl didn't try to sit up as straight as she used to in order to greet me.  I patted her head and had her rest her weary soul on the pillow.  Tears came into my eyes as I remembered all of the times that she cuddled with me when she came to my house when my parents were out of town, or how she would scavenge the floor after the kids ate something for a treat!  It's funny - you don't think that you can feel the spirit when a pet is getting ready to pass to the other side, but I swear that there was something in that room.  Peace.  Kristen felt it too, so I know I'm not crazy.

 At 5:45, my dad, Clay, and Adam went to the veterinary clinic and stayed with Belle while she passed.

At 6:45, my "little" family arrived at my parent's home.  We chose to use this as a family home evening lesson - we talked to them on the way about what happens when we die. The kids were all in their pajamas.  Clay began to fill the hole, then I asked Zach if he wanted to try.  He did.  One by one, all of the littler kids lined up behind Zach to take their turn filling the grave.  Tearjerker for us adults.  A stone was placed on top and the kids put flowers on top.  Then we had a few prayers (from the kids).  Emma prayed that Belle would have a good time with Heavenly Father.  Alyssa blessed the food.  We all sang "I Am a Child of God" and said our final goodbyes to a loyal little friend who will be remembered.

Rest in Peace, Belle.