Tall Tidbits

Shrek Forever After House Party!

2010-05-26T15:36:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday was the first time I had ever been to or hosted a House Party. Never heard of it? Well, now is the time to check it out! A good friend of mine told me about a party that she had had for House Party and I wanted to do one myself. You log onto houseparty.com, fill out a profile, and then check out all of the the wonderful party offerings there are. I selected the parties that I was interested in and that I knew my friends would love to come to.

I was amazed at all of the things that Shrek and McDonald's sent me via House Party to create an amazing party. They sent me 16 Party invitations (in addition to the email invites that you can send via their website), Shrek napkins, Shrek cups, Shrek plates, two Shrek glasses, a poster for the new Shrek Forever After movie, 16 Shrek Forever After happy meal toys, 15 Shrek Forever After watches, 10 boxes to put 20 all white meat chicken McNuggets in, a happy meal box, 15 coupons for free snack size Mcflurrys, 15 coupons for free Minute Maid apple juice boxes, plus LOTS of codes that could be entered in on McDonalds.com/Shrek.

With the codes you can unlock games and choose from one of three rewards. The reward choices are: A Shrek Flash Mini-Game Pack from Activision, one night DVD rental from Redbox, or a bundle of 25 photo prints from Snapfish (not including shipping and handling). Amazing huh! To top it all off they sent me a $75 McDonald's arch card so that I could buy the chicken McNuggets for the party plus any other food (and Happy Meal toys) that I needed for my party.

We had 29 people come to the party! It was SO fun. The kids (and the adults) loved the seemingly neverending supply of all white meat Chicken McNuggets. I also added six large fries from McDonald's. In addition, we had a veggie tray with hidden valley ranch dip, sliced apples w/ carmel dip (Yes, I stole the idea from McDonald's apple dippers), Chips w/ salsa and guacamole, strawberries and watermelon with a green fruit dip (Shrek green of course), a Shrek cake, and worms in dirt (chocolate pudding with oreo crumbs and gummy worms), and nice refreshing water.

One of the children brought Shrek twinkies to share, I had a friend that brought several two litters of pop, and another friend brought ice. The worm pudding was a HUGE success. We played a game where we stuck a paper with the name and picture of a character on the back of the partygoers. The person would then ask questions to find out who they were. The kids then had a great time changing which character they were and talking about who their favorite characters are. Here are our very own characters:

Bathing Beauty

2009-10-27T11:33:00.000-07:00

Emily has "graduated" from her little bathtub. Now she takes a bath with her big sister. I thought that I ought to catch her last baby bath tub adventure on camera. She is such a happy baby! This smile was not just for the sake of having a cute picture. I sure love this little gal.

First Visit From the "Tooth Fairy"

2009-10-26T09:51:00.000-07:00

Look at my tooth!

Our "Tooth Fairy" requested that Kayley put her baby teeth in a special box so that she could be sure not to miss any. ;)

She has now lost two teeth. She asked me point blank if I was the Tooth Fairy. I asked her what she thought the answer was. She said that she was pretty sure I was. I didn't deny it. My little girl, 6 going on 16. Sigh.

Bear World Fun

2009-10-03T10:35:00.000-07:00

At the end of July we went up to Idaho Falls to attend my niece's wedding. While we were there, we decided to go play at Bear World. It is a place that you can drive through and see the bears (thus the name), Elk, wolves, and other animals typically found in the wild in Yellowstone. I read that the bears there are mostly bears that have been in films, the circus etc... and their offspring.

They also have a pond where you can feed the fish, a petting zoo, and kiddie rides that are all included in the admission price.

Here are some of the highlights.

Jonathan and Kayley waiting not so patiently for the ride to begin.

My dad is playing the part of papa bear. Brad had to work, so he didn't get to come with us. Laurie is playing the mama bear with Kayley and Jonathan as the babies.

My sister Laurie came and played with us. She is a lot of fun. :)

Jonathan kept calling the deer Bambi.

We're Back (Finally)

2009-10-03T10:30:00.000-07:00

This summer has been spent mostly in trying to get my knee to behave. Lame I know, but it definitely wasn't at the top of my list until it had to be. It is still not behaving totally, but the time has come to just exercise it when I can and just get on with life.

So, it is time to get on with the show. It's nice to be back. :)

Say It Isn't So Valassis

2009-07-18T11:33:00.000-07:00

I just found out yesterday that Valassis is planning to pull out all of their coupon inserts out newspapers. I am a coupon shopper and have saved my family countless dollars using them. In the process we have tried and now love tons of products that we had never tried before. I personally get two Sunday papers for this very reason.

Here is the statement by Thomas Murray of the Valassis Corporation, which owns RedPlum, issued a press release stating:

"Starting in February, the RedPlum coupon booklet will now be delivered in Cleveland through consumers' mailboxes along with their weekly grocery circulars and other savings and deals. By using direct mail, the RedPlum insert will now be able to reach almost twice as many Cleveland households as in the past. In these challenging economic times, it has never been more important to make these essential savings available to as many Clevelanders as possible so they can stretch the dollars in their wallets." -Thomas Murray, Vice President and General Manager of Free Standing Inserts for the Valassis Corporation

While this may reach more people theoretically it does not do much to help the many families that buy in bulk using multiple coupons to keep their families afloat. I know of several moms who buy 5 or more newspapers because of the amounts that their family consumes and or stocks up on. The newspaper industry is struggling anyway as are many grocery stores. The Red Plum inserts being taken away via newspaper subscriptions will only put more nails into their coffins.

This company has coupons online, but I don't know if that will continue. Many people who have relied on these coupons do not have access to the internet and or a printer. I found out this sad sad news from a fantastic website that I frequent called Pinching Your Pennies. It is a great resource for families that are just eeking by to make the best of their resources.

I really hope that Valassis will reconsider their decision.

Silly Pictures

2009-06-29T14:53:00.000-07:00

These unique pictures were created by my SIL. Enjoy! lol!

Back to Cyberland :D

2009-06-29T14:40:00.000-07:00

On Friday, we bought our very first laptop as a family. We have really enjoyed it so far. I hope that I never take for granted the mobility of our laptop and wireless internet. I love being able to show my parents pictures that family have sent us without them (or me) having to trek up and down our stairs. It is a beautiful thing!

It's Officially a Gonner ...

2009-06-09T16:49:00.000-07:00

Well, my computer has been trying to retire for several months now. It has finally gotten its wish. I hope to be able to replace it with a Macbook, but we shall see.

Lately I've ...

2009-05-26T14:04:00.000-07:00

learned a lot about myself. This has come mostly from my experiences trying to recover and move past knee surgury.

1. A "crutch" can be really helpful right after you experience a trauma in your life, but it does more harm than good if you hold onto it too long.

2. I can still accomplish most of the things I need to in my everyday life. It just might take longer and require some interesting tactics.

3. I can do a pretty awesome Frankenstein's Monster impression.

4. I'm getting better at being on the receiving end of meals, child care etc... I do still prefer to be the giver though.

5. I can still keep my kids in line (for some reason they keep trying to take advantage of the situation), I just have to rely on innovative techniques.

6. My hubby and parents are real troopers and I'm very blessed and lucky to have them in my life.

Bedtime Story Jammy Party

2009-05-23T15:36:00.000-07:00

For Family Home Evening (We try dedicated one night each week to spending quality time together.) we decided to have movie/slumber party complete with popcorn of cours. The kids totally dug the idea. What did we watch? Bedtime Stories of course.

The movie in the background.

Emily looking slightly like a frog.

The kids in their jammies w/ daddy in the background.

Easter Pictures at Last

2009-05-14T09:02:00.000-07:00

Marci's Stats According to Kayley

2009-05-07T19:35:00.000-07:00

In preschool, they talked about how great mothers are (I really like that subject.). They asked the kids some questions about their mothers. The bold print words and numbers were her answers.

My Mom is 60 years old.

My Mom is 18 inches tall.

My Moms favorites color is green.

My Mom's favorite food is cereal.

My Mom loves to go to her mom and dad's house.

My Mom weighs 17 pounds.

My Mom's best friend is Cindy.

My Mom loves it when I wash the dishes with her.

The Academy Award Goes To....

2009-05-05T11:53:00.000-07:00

Kayley and Jonathan have been taking a theater class through an organization called Up With Kids. They have learned all about staging, singing, dancing, cooperation, and so many other things. After all of those classes, they got to perform their production, "Enchanted...starring YOU!) for Woodstock Elementary and then for all of the people they invited at Bonneville Junior High.

They are the two little "coneheads" on the far right of the front row.

Afterwords, they had the presentation of the Academy Award. It turns out they all won one. They were each presented with a statue that resembled Oscar. Jonathan couldn't keep his eyes off of it. He still carries it around everywhere.

Jonathan was studying his award as we were leaving McDonald's (Guess who got to pick the restaurant after the performance.) and exclaimed, "He has a golden bum!"

Easter Egg Splash

2009-04-30T13:10:00.000-07:00

We like to do things that are a little bit different or quirky around here sometimes. One of our favorites is the H2O Easter Egg Hunt/Easter Egg Splash at the Murray Rec Center. This is our second year doing it. In case you were wondering, and I know you were, they do not actually put candy in these Easter Eggs. Afterwords, they show their stash of Easter Eggs to the staff and they get a bag of candy. :D

Kayley, Jonathan, and their friend Logan checking out their stashes before they get to play in the swimming pool during the open plunge.

Got their attention. Not!

Can you spot Kayley?

WARNING Graphic Medical Pictures!!!!!

2009-04-29T11:58:00.000-07:00

That having been said. Here are a few pictures of my knee at one week after surgery. If you are sqeemish, turn back now.

Here is Kayley trying out my crutches on for size.

This is what my actual leg looks like in my "immobilizer" that I get to where for another month. YIPPEE!

Here is what my leg looks like now. I do bruise easily, but still....

Adventures in Knee Surgery

2009-04-27T15:47:00.000-07:00

I had knee surgery last Monday (April 20th. I actually had injured my knee for the eighth time about this time last year. Since my last injury I had been wearing a brace that looked very much like this:

The brace that I am now supposed to wear for a month looks like this:

It is a little bit annoying because I have to mostly walk with a straight leg. When I wear it under pants it looks really funny. I then refer to my re-cooperating leg as my "Michelin Man" leg.

I can now walk with the use of one crutch. Kayley has been trying hard to make my crutches "fit" her. Her solution is to use the hand holds as her arm rests. I will try to get a picture of it for you. :D

Hurrah for Susan Boyle

2009-04-24T12:08:00.000-07:00

I have always been a major fan of the underdog. It is just part of who I am. I couldn't help cheering when I saw the video of Susan on Britain's Got Talent. She did not give off the best first impression. Most people were seen sneering and thinking that she had no business being there. Boy did she show them! Good for you Susan. If you want to check it out you can see it on YouTube following this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9z0h1NNk1Ik

Enjoy!

Our Wonderful Children's Museum

2009-04-04T18:26:00.000-07:00

On St. Patrick's Day, our local The Discovery Gateway Children's Museum let us (and anyone else who wanted to) discover all the fun things it has to offer for free. Kayley had been there before with her Aunt Kim, but it was my first time. What an amazing place it is! I took a few million pictures while I was there. I won't bore you with all of the them, but here are a few.

Kayley and the rock wall. She kept on wanted to try it until she was satisfied with what she could do.

This is a random cool jeep that you could pretend to put gas into. Jonathan and Kayley just thought that it was cool.

This is part of the "grocery store" they had set up for the kids to experience.

Here they got to use teamwork to help "build" structures.

This was in a structure that resembled a beehive. The kids loved it because you could send balls into these tubes where they would go flying off. The bonus is that you would get hit with a small blast of air. This of course, was Kayley's favorite part.

They had this cool defuct helicopter that the kids could explore.

Here is a "Mad Scientist" making "Leprechaun's Brew". The kid's found this absolutely fastinating.

Jonathan had fun building with these unusual blocks.

Today I'm Grateful For...

2009-03-30T11:47:00.000-07:00

Today hasn't been a particularly wonderful day, but still there is a lot I have to be grateful for. Here are a few things:

A shed to put our fruit trees in on this SNOWY spring day.

The fact that we didn't plan our fruit trees already thus they are still alive.

We went home before doing errands, so Jonathan's pull up blow out happened at home. (Sorry if that's TMI).

Having a childproof lock on our door so that Jonathan couldn't open the door for the person that rang the doorbell during my bath.

I'm grateful that it was just our next door neighbor and they phoned me later.

I'm grateful for baths in general (I must say though that I miss the uninterrupted kind).

Warm clothes on this very chilly day have been much appreciated.

Finally, I'm grateful to have yummy cinnamon rolls to eat that my wonderful husband made for us yesterday.

More Pictures

2009-03-21T22:13:00.001-07:00

I thought I would add a few more "recent" pictures. They were taken four weeks ago.

We're Back

2009-03-21T21:53:00.000-07:00

I didn't realize that it had been almost a month since our last post. It is late, so I will refrain from saying a lot, but I thought that you might enjoy a few more recent pictures of our family. These were taken four weeks ago. I will add some more soon. Emily slept through most of the picture taking.

Respond if you Dare

2009-03-21T19:54:00.001-07:00

The first three people to respond to this post will get something made by me! My choice. For you. This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:

1. I make no guarantees that you will like what I make!

2. What I create will be just for you.

3. It'll be done this year (anytime).

4. You have no clue what it's going to be. It may something I sew or take a picture of, or something I paint. I may bake you something and mail it to you. Who knows? Not you, that's for sure!

5. The catch? Oh, the catch is that you must repost this on your blog and offer the same to the first 3 people who do the same on your blog.

The first 3 people to do so and leave a comment telling me they did, win a FAB-U-LOUS homemade gift by me!

Oh, and be sure to post a picture of what you win when you get it!

Our Precious Emily

2009-02-20T13:44:00.000-08:00

Little Emily Anne Olson was born on February 3rd at 9:08 PM. Our little girl was only 5 lb. and 15 oz. when she was born, but true to her genes she was 20 inches long. She is very healthy and we absolutely adore her. At her two week appointment, she weighed in at 6 lb. and 3 oz.

Here are a few pictures that we have taken of her with the family.

So, It Will Be on or Before Feb. 3rd

2009-01-28T12:47:00.000-08:00

I had a doctor's appointment on Monday. My doctor is sure that she could come at any moment. He also let me know that he will be gone from Feb. 6th to Feb. 14th for a medical convention. My due date is Feb. 5th. I prefer to go unmedicated, but I decided to schedule a day to be induced because I really would prefer to have my doctor be there. I will keep you posted on how everything turns out.

PB & J Love

2009-01-15T15:22:00.000-08:00

I totally love peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I confess! I was eating one with my kids the other day and marveling at how much it made me feel like a kid again. It was a nice little break from my mommy reality. :D

Comparing Bellies

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

Jonathan likes to "see" Emily by having me uncover my belly. He loves to watch her move around. Yesterday, he told me that he had a baby too. Her name is Cindy. He pooched his little belly out and wanted me to kiss and hug "his baby".

Sleepless Nights

2009-01-06T14:06:00.000-08:00

I guess that I should be grateful that the sleepness nights are just beginning. It seems like I experienced them much sooner in the other two pregnancies. The baby and my practice contractions took turns keeping me up last night. I'm not sure how much sleep I was able to get in between, but I am guessing that it might have been about two and a half hours.

Thankfully, this too shall pass. Then I will have a little one that vocally keep me awake. lol!

Christmas Utah

2008-12-23T05:21:00.000-08:00

Last Friday we went to see "Christmas Utah". This has become a tradition in our family. There is a guy named Marty who creates this fantastic display every year. He decorates his lawn and home then arranges it so that a local radio station plays the songs that synchronize with his light display so that you can tune in and listen in front of their house. The wonderful thing is that it is so close to where we live. :D

A few of the songs are the same every year because they are favorites, but there is always something new to see. If you notice in the picture of the house, "Santa" makes several appearances at the window. I think they have a tv positioned right in front of the window with a video on loop.

Anyway, Jonathan was absolutely fascinated with "Santa's" appearances. He kept on waving wildly at him and asking him to come out. He insisted that he had something that he needed to tell him. So cute!

They have a few videos of the songs posted on their website. To see the videos or to get directions on how to go see it yourself, visit: http://www.christmasutah.com

One Word Tag

2008-12-18T21:09:00.000-08:00

Rules: Answer the questions with one word only!

Were is your cell phone? purse
Were is your significant other? home
You're hair color? brown
You're favorite thing? hugs
You're dream last night? none
You're life dream/goal? happiness
The room your in? computer
You're hobby? reading
You're fear? snakes
Where do you want to be in 6 years? Hawaii
Where were you last night? home
What your not? short
One of you're wish list items? jacuzzi
Where you grew up? Nebraska
The last thing you did? laundry
What you are wearing: clothes
You're TV? old
You're pet? none
You're computer? faulty
You're mood? relaxed
Missing someone? brothers
Something your NOT wearing? shoes
Favorite store? Target
Your summer? relaxed
Love someone? absolutely
You're fave color? blue
When is the last time you laughed? today
When is the last time you cried? month
Your significant other's hair: missing
You're life in one word: Yicks!

Now it's you're turn!

Kayley Unplugged

2008-12-18T18:21:00.000-08:00

Kayley's Christmas Preschool Program was today. This is the second year that she has attended this preschool. It was fun to compare it to the one that she was in last year. Last year she stood board straight and looked out at the audience to see what they were doing. She would sing a few words here or there, but she looked like she could think of several other places she would rather be.

This year she was singing right along and was trying hard to keep up with the "choreography". She even did some of it before anyone else, and you could tell that it reminded the teacher that she had forgotten that part. lol! Such a change! It is amazing what a difference a year can make.

She, of course, is the tallest one in the picture. Surprise, surprise. It doesn't help that she is the oldest either because her birthday is right after the cutoff for kindergarten here. Oh well. She loves her preschool, so that is all that matters.

Music Moves Me

2008-12-13T19:10:00.000-08:00

I was just sitting here listening to the music that I chose for my blog today. Kayley came up and decided that she want to listen to music too, so she blasted classical music on her little radio. I had to keep kicking her out of the room so that I could enjoy and sing along to MY songs.

That got my mind going. I found myself pondering why I wanted so badly to listen to the songs that I chose ALONE. I realized that most of the songs have been fairly significant to me at different parts of my life. They move my soul in one way or another.

I also found that I was grateful that my five year old has already developed an affinity for classical music. I love that she loves it. I now need to work on how to get her to listen to it at appropriate times and not at the top of her radio's volume. :D

Two of My Favorite Things

2008-12-06T06:21:00.000-08:00

I have a definite sweet tooth. One of my favorite things about the winter is that my favorite fruit shows up in stores every where. Have you tried the clementine Cuties? We love them in our home. Kayley and Jonathan would much rather eat one than have candy. Now that is good incentive to keep them around!

Last night we decided to make one of my favorite things. Apple Crisp a 'la mode!

I didn't think to take a picture of it before we dug in. Sorry about that. Here is the recipe that we used (We double it and put it in a 9x13 casserole dish). Enjoy!

Joan's Apple Crisp
(from Daily Meal Planner by Joan Day Brady)

1/3 cup sifted flour
2/3 cup instant powdered milk
3 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, cold
4 cups sliced pared tart apples
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Grease a shallow baking dish that can hold 6 cups. Mix flour, powdered mild, 3 tablespoons sugar, nutmeg, salt, and 1 teaspoon cinnamon in a small bowl. Add butter and blend with a fork (or pastry cutter) until crumbly. Combine apples with 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon in a baking dish. Sprinkle the crumb mixture on top of the apples. Bake at 325 degrees for 45 minutes or until the apples are tender.

We ate the apple crisp with natural vanilla Breyer's ice cream. It was amazing!

Gone in Only Three Days

2008-12-03T07:53:00.000-08:00

While I was checking my email today, my son was "cleaning out" his little paper advent calendar. His sister caught him. Days 11, 14, and 18 were the only ones that were not yet opened. The chocolate from all the rest had already disappeared into his stomach. How's that for a healthy breakfast.

Oh well, next year I will make sure that the calendar's are well out of the reach of our little people.

Things I'm Thankful for This Pregnancy

2008-12-03T07:12:00.000-08:00

This is me at about 6 1/2 months. Thanksgiving put me in the mood to really contemplate the things that I am thankful for. My pregnancy has not been perfect, but there is still a lot of things that have been good about the experience.

Here are a few of them:

1. I have been fairly healthy and according to the ultrasounds our daughter is also very healthy.

2. Our baby is very active. She especially gets excited when she hears her brother and sister playing.

3. My knee has been acting just about as well as can be expected under the circumstances. :D

4. I'm having a lot of fun planning and dreaming about what to do about the "girl's room" and Jonathan's room.

5. It is fun to watch Jonathan and Kayley get excited about our new baby. Jonathan especially seems to love "practicing" being a big brother to every baby that he sees.

6. I live very close to the hospital that I will be delivering at. My doctor's office is just 3 floors up from where I will deliver.

7. I have family nearby that are willing and able to step in to help when I'm feeling not up to the tasks of the day. It is comforting knowing that they are already excited to step in and help when little Emily arrives.

8. My dear friends who are pregnant with me. It has been comforting to be able to discuss how were are doing and to be able to relate to each other.

9. I love seeing Brad get excited about our new little daughter.

10. I love getting Emily's things ready. I'm enjoying washing her clothes and imaging what she will look like in them.

Where's the Unpause Button?

2008-11-25T11:53:00.001-08:00

I know that I'm pregnant and all but I am really sick of having my brain be on "pause" today. I had to go back into my house THREE times before I ran my errands this morning because I couldn't manage to make it out the door with everything I needed the first time.

It would have been pretty funny to watch, if I wasn't the one experiencing it. Thankfully, my children have gotten used to "scattered brained" mom and it didn't phase them at all. Sigh. This too shall pass, right?!

Is Your "Hut on Fire"?

2008-11-24T16:21:00.000-08:00

I received an email from a good friend lately. I thought I should share it in case if any of you are feeling discouraged and could use a little lift. :D

WHEN YOUR HUT'S ON FIRE!!!!

The only survivor of a shipwreck was washed up on a small, uninhabited island. He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him. Every day he scanned the horizon for help, but none seemed forthcoming.

Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of driftwood to protect him from the elements, and to store his few possessions. One day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little hut in flames, with smoke rolling up to the sky. He felt the worst had happened, and everything was lost. He was stunned with disbelief, grief, and anger. He cried out, 'God! How could you do this to me?'

Early the next day, he was awakened by the sound of a ship approaching the island! It had come to rescue him! 'How did you know I was here?' asked the weary man of his rescuers. 'We saw your smoke signal,' they replied.

The Moral of This Story: It's easy to get discouraged when things are going bad, but we shouldn't lose heart, because God is at work in our lives, even in the midst of our pain and suffering. Remember that the next time your little hut seems to be burning to the ground. It just may be a smoke signal that summons the Grace of God.

Just a Dreamin'

2008-11-19T07:22:00.000-08:00

I love where I live. I love how close we are to freeway access, but how far we are from any dangerously busy streets. I love that we are near just about any store that I would like/need to go to. I love our neighbors! I love our backyard. I love almost everything about our house. However, I do find myself wishing that we could change some things and add other features.

Here is my list of "Dream Improvements":

1. Mudroom - Anyone with children will know why this would be a wonderful room to have.

2. Wider rooms- Our house is fairly narrow. I think that two feet added onto the front and back of the house would make a HUGE difference. There are only so many ways that you can rearrange furniture in a narrow home.

3. Top Floor Laundry Room- Our bedrooms are upstairs, our "laundry room" is downstairs. It didn't seem like a problem for awhile, but now that I am pregnant and I have a bum knee I find that the situation can be rather daunting.

4. A Dining Room- Our kitchen table barely fits in the kitchen. It would be nice to have a room just for eating so that the kids would be less inclined to sneak around the corner with their food and try to eat in the living room.

5. New Kitchen Cabinets- We have a dishwasher that is "portable" and hooks up to the sink. I dream of one day being able to build it into new cabinets (It is full sized and fairly new) and of having more cabinet storage than I know what to do with.

Those are my major dreams concerning the home. In the meantime, we will go on enjoying being in our home. After all it is the love that makes a house a home, not the actual structure.

Pumpkin Patch

2008-10-30T17:08:00.001-07:00

Jonathan and the "not scary haunted house".

Our daughter the giant. She is almost 4' tall and only 5.

I can't believe how big he has gotten. He will be 3 next month.

Kayley, Jonathan, and my dad as "monsters".

Kayley and the "Haunted House". Jonathan wouldn't get anywhere near it.

Our Little Girl is 5!

2008-10-16T23:39:00.000-07:00

It seems like just yesterday that I was holding her in my arms for the very first time. In some ways she is still very much my "little" girl, but in other ways she can be so grown up.

Recently Kayley watched me dealing with her little brother in the grocery store (Jonathan was in full blown stinker mode). She said to me, "Sometimes being a mother is really hard huh." I replied that it is, but that I love it. She then asked me if it was fun sometimes. I said it was, and she wanted some examples. She paused for a moment and then said, "You know. Sometimes it is hard to be a kid too." She was almost shocked when I agreed and mentioned several things that can be hard about childhood.

A different day, she insisted that I write down the phone number of the police (She has already memorized our phone number and grandma and grandpa's. She likes to dial the numbers herself). I thought that maybe it would be good for her to learn about 911, but then I had a feeling that she had an ulterior motive. I decided to put her off for the time being.

As we were driving to the store, we passed a police car. She said that she would like the police officer to take away her brother because he would not listen to HER. I asked her if she thought the police should come and pick her up when she doesn't listen to me. She didn't like that idea. We then talked about what police officers actually do. I still don't trust her with that number yet.

Well, Happy Birthday my sweet daughter. I love you!

Lake Powell Trip

2008-10-15T11:34:00.000-07:00

We leave for Lake Powell next Tuesday. My husband had won a houseboat trip in May and now we are finally going to take it. I'm a little nervous because I'm not in the best shape right now. My knee still is working at about 85% of what it can normally do, and well as most of you know I'm quickly approaching being very pregnant. It should still be really fun. I may just have to cut back on all of the hiking that I want to do.

If you've been to Lake Powell, where was your favorite place to go?

Neal E. Boyd Has Real Heart

2008-09-24T21:07:00.000-07:00

This young man sings with his whole soul. How could you not love him? I adore him.

Nuttin But Strinz Rocks

2008-09-24T21:03:00.001-07:00

These guys are incredible! I'm so amazed at how they have developed their talents in such a unique and entertaining way. I would be thrilled if they won. I really like Neal too. Their stories are just so compelling.

Utah State Fair

2008-09-09T09:16:00.000-07:00

My camera was having an identity crisis (I think it wanted to be an iPhone), so it wasn't working yesterday. These pictures are actually from last year's trip to the fair.

This is K and J standing next to the "Little Hands on the Farm" exhibit. It was really cool. They take a basket and and apron and proceed through different parts of the "farm" doing chores. They put the "products" of their labor into the basket. At the end, they sort the things in their basket into their designated areas.

They are then "paid" for their labors with a paper $1 coupon to be used in the "Farmer's Market". They could chose from cereal, chips, apples, milk, cheese, and other food. K chose strawberry milk and J chose chocolate milk. They loved it! The whole experience didn't even cost us any money. The exhibit was totally free. Cool huh?!

They also loved riding the ponies. I wish that I had been able to take a picture this year because K looked like a total natural while she was riding. She still says that she wants to be a cowgirl and a vet when she grows up.

It's a .....

2008-09-08T15:12:00.000-07:00

GIRL! We had our ultrasound today. Everything looks great except that the placenta is lying a little lower than they would like. Also, they pushed back my due date to February 5th (It was January 29th.). Oh well. We actually expected that because my due date was also pushed back with our other two children too.

Our daughter is SUPER excited that she will have a sister. :D Her little brother is just happy about the idea of not being the littlest anymore.

How Many Flashlights Does It Take?

2008-08-07T15:05:00.000-07:00

How many flashlights do you think a family of four (soon to be five) needs. Four? Five? Ten at the most? Well according to my husband, we do not have nearly enough.

Please don't be too concerned though. He counted them recently and we currently have 56 flashlights (not including our little LED keychains) spread through our our home and vehicles. Oh, and we also have four lanterns.

Now you are probably asking yourself, yes they have plenty of flashlights; but do they have the batteries to go with them. Mr. Emergency Preparedness (aka my husband) has also made sure that they all have fresh batteries plus he has enough batteries on hand at all times so that the majority of them have back up batteries.

If your power goes out, your welcome to borrow a flashlight or two, or ten. My husband will be happy to lend them out, but he may be a little disappointed if your power is out and his is not. He'd hate to be missing out on the adventure.

Our Dog Ate Our Fiberoptic Cable

2008-08-07T14:56:00.000-07:00

.... no really he did. It's ok, you can laugh. We laugh about it too now that it is over.

Max ate a section of the cable sometime on Monday. The result was that we were without a phone and the internet until about 1:30PM Wednesday. Thankfully, Max seems to be fine after eating it, and they didn't charge us for the repair.

Swing Vote

2008-07-31T09:11:00.001-07:00

We were able to see a special screening of Swing Vote last night. I actually liked the movie a lot more than I thought I would. My big complaint about the movie is that Kevin Costner's character swears a lot. It is part of who his character is, but still could be very offensive to a lot of people.

The girl who plays his daughter was absolutely brilliant! She was completely believable and absolutely adorable.

The movie did have some very poignant moments and you may even find a tear or two sliding down you cheek as you watch it. If you can stomach the profanity, I would definitely recommend that you go see it.

2008-07-30T14:38:00.000-07:00

You Are Pocahantas!

Free-spirited and wise. You have a strong passionate spirit that touches and changes all who know you. The wisdom and common sense that you have is really what guides you through life. Even so, you also have a very playful side that loves adventure and excitement.

Which Disney Princess Are You?

Cloth Diapers

2008-07-25T09:56:00.000-07:00

We are contemplating using cloth diapers on our next baby. The baby is due January 29, 2009. In our research we have found a diaper that we would really like to try. It is made by Bum Genius.

My Little Runaway

2008-07-23T09:41:00.000-07:00

My daughter threatens to runaway every month or so. She is only 4, but she has thought it through way too much for my liking. Last night she said that she was going to runaway to her grandma and grandpa's house because my husband spanked her and sent her to her room for slamming her little brother's toes in the bathroom door. She already had her suitcase packed.

I told her that it wouldn't be a good idea to try to walk to their house because a stranger might pick her up. She said, "Oh, that's OK; I'll just take a taxi!".

At bedtime, I asked her how she would feel if I said that I would like to trade her in for a different kid. She said, "Not very good." I then asked her how she thought I felt when she told me that she wanted someone else to raise her. She again said, "Not very good." She decided that she would not talk about running away again (We'll see how long that lasts). Sigh. I thought running away was an older child ploy. I think that I am really in for it when she is a teenager.

Celebrity Morph by MyHeritage

2008-07-12T20:04:00.001-07:00

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celebrity

I was pretty happy to find out who I would "morph" into. I've always thought that she is beautiful. Come on try it. You know you want to. LOL!

Guess What?

2008-07-09T13:00:00.000-07:00

Our son's favorite thing to say starts with, "Guess What?!"

He then pauses for a moment to make sure that you are paying complete attention to him and then he says, "I love you!"

It makes me melt every time. :D

Beautiful Lenths Donation

2008-06-04T09:12:00.000-07:00

I read about beautiful lengths in a magazine. They make wigs for women who have lost their hair like Locks of Love, but they only require 8 inches of hair instead of 10.

I was ready for a change. I always love to have my hair shorter in the summer. Now I have short hair, and I get to help some one else. How cool is that?!

No Polar Bear Club for Me

2008-05-28T13:33:00.000-07:00

Last week I got a nasty surprise. Our hot water heater was not working, so I had to think of some way to make my bath warmer. I boiled several pots of water. I succeeded in making the water slightly above frigid.

Thankfully, the pilot light had only blown out and the hot water heater has been working well ever since. Hot water has now been added to my list of things to be thankful for. :D

David Archuleta

2008-05-15T10:25:00.000-07:00

Ok, I'm really excited that David Archuleta is now in the final two for American Idol. I normally do not get into "reality shows", but who couldn't help but love this humble guy. :D

Labyrinth Obsessed

2008-05-13T09:44:00.000-07:00

You probably know by now that I love the movie Labyrinth. I told my husband that I wanted the new addition of the movie for Mother's Day. I opened it on Saturday, and we have already watched it at least 5 times. My kids love it! HeHe. My husband thinks that we are all weird for liking it so much. He teased us about it and then he sat down and watched the rest of it. LOL!

My son gets excited every time he sees Toby (the baby). He keeps pointing out babies everywhere that we go. His hints about how he would like to have one in the house are becoming more persistent. I guess he's tired of being the littlest one.

Baking Product or Shampoo?

2008-05-07T07:00:00.001-07:00

Leaving two little boys alone for five minutes can lead to a very interesting adventure. This is the lesson that I learned yesterday.

I was watching my friend's son who is almost two years old for a couple of hours. He had been playing fairly well with my 2 1/2 year old son. I was looking up something on my computer and the boys had shut the door closest to me so that I could not watch them play in the playroom.

I heard the door open to the other side of the basement and I looked over to see my son completely covered in flour. Not a good sign! I opened the door completely and found flour all over the floor, the mats, the vacuum, and a very casper looking little boy. Sigh. There is no use crying over spilled flour right.

Well, I decided that the little boys were in desperate need of a bath. My friend's child had so much flour in his hair that you could not tell that his hair is brown and his scalp was completely caked in white flour. I'm pretty sure that my son had poured a lot of it onto his head using the cup that we use to scoop the floor out of the storage bucket.

The little boy did not take very kindly to get an impromptu bath. After my son joined him, he decided that maybe playing in the water was a better option than crying. My son, came clean immediately. I shampooed the other little guy's hair four times and then gave up trying to get all the flour out of his hair. The remnants had turned into paste. Grrrr!

I put them both in fresh clothes just in time for my friend to arrive. We decided that laughing was a much better option than crying. The moral of this story is, never leave two something year olds alone in the vicinity of a container of flour. It is not a good thing.

The Shed

2008-05-06T06:36:00.000-07:00

We have been talking about building this shed for as long as we have been married (a little over 7 years). We've had a garage door without the hardware for it for about 5 years. Now we are actually starting to see it take shape.

This is what our back porch looks like right now. I discovered this picture this morning along with about 15 other interesting shots that our amateur resident photographer (AKA our four year old daughter) secretly took with our digital camera. By the end of June we are hoping to be able to use the back porch as an official back porch.

Ouch!

2008-04-30T09:03:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, our little family went for a walk. I was walking our dog, Max. There were some dogs across the street that he wanted to go visit. I hanked on his leash to get him to heel again and then something happened. Somehow during all of the excitement, I dislocated my knee.

This is not the first time that it has happened. This is more like the seventh time. Thankfully my knee cap has always gone immediately back into place. I'm a little worried this time because it has rubbed more and it hurts more than it ever has before.

The knee brace in the picture is very similar to the one that I am wearing now. My daughter thinks that it would be fun to wear. Personally, I am excited for the time to come that I can put it back in my drawer and not use it again for a LONG time.

Gone to the Worms

2008-04-25T20:30:00.000-07:00

Today we were working in our flower beds. I discovered a worm and showed it to my children. My daughter wanted to hold it and then my son wanted one of his own. Soon I was hunting all over the place for worm after worm. We talked about how important it was for the worms to not dry out, so we made sure that they were only out for a little while before we returned them to the dirt.

My son placed his last worm gently in the dirt and then said, "Bye, bye worm. I love you!" It was so sincere and sweet.

This whole episode got me thinking about worms and looking for a picture of one. This took my in a direction that I did not expect to go. Take a look at this clip and see if it brings back memories for you. I give you the worm from Labyrinth.

The Beauty of Bread

2008-04-24T12:10:00.001-07:00

I learned how to make homemade bread a year ago. I had made several loaves previously in a breadmaker, but this was the first time that I had made it from scratch and baked it in the oven.

I am now hooked on making bread and eating it when it is still warm. There is something almost sacred about the process. No two batches ever turn out exactly the same, and you have to remember that you are dealing with a living thing. It can be harmed if you neglect it.

The smell of the bread bread baking will soon be permeating my home. I look forward to slicing it and enjoying a piece. I always make 4 loaves. Bread is always best when you have the ability to share it.

Piano in Time Out

2008-04-24T11:56:00.000-07:00

First of all, this is not a picture of our piano. Ours is an upright, but sometimes I like to pretend that it is a baby grand. ;)

My children were playing the piano yesterday. At first it was rather pleasant, but progressively it became louder, and then it escalated to pure torture. I was in the kitchen when it happened, so I was not sure which child was to blame (most likely both). I decided that the only reasonable thing was to put the piano in time out.

This was the most recent of many inanimate objects that have received this "punishment". Neither child was singled out as the guilty one yet order was restored. Thank goodness the objects cannot yell, "Unfair!".

Painful to Watch

2008-04-21T20:51:00.000-07:00

This little guy is my son. He is vibrant, fun loving, and my little cuddler.

Today his leg does not seem to be cooperating. Several times today he has been running and then his legs just give out on him and he falls. He fell down our little steps (3 steps) by our back door twice. He is not a clumsy child. Finally tonight he started clutching one leg and complaining that it hurts. There are no bruises or obvious scrapes. We gave him some tylenol before he went to bed. Hopefully his leg will be back to normal tomorrow. For some reason, I am really worried about it. :(

Sunset

2008-04-18T21:23:00.000-07:00

I was driving with my children and father today. I spotted a sunset that was very low in the sky. We then started a game to see how often we could spot the sunset through the buildings and trees. It struck me how simple yet memorable that little moment was. There is beauty all around us. We just need to slow down long enough to see it.

Playground Wisdom

2008-04-15T18:04:00.000-07:00

I once heard a book on tape called "All I Ever Really Needed to Know I learned in Kingergarten". I thought I would share a little bit of it with you.

"All I Ever Really Needed to Know
I Learned in Kindergarten"
Robert Fulgham

Most of what I really need to know about how to live, and what to do, and how to be, I learned in Kindergarten. Wisdom was not at the top of the graduate school mountain, but there in the sandbox at nursery school.

These are the things I learned..

Share everything.
Play fair.
Don't hit people.
Put things back where you found them.
Clean up your own mess.
Don't take things that aren't yours.
Say sorry when you hurt somebody.
Wash your hands before you eat.
Flush.
Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you.
Live a balanced life.

Learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some.

Take a nap every afternoon.
When you go out into the world, watch for traffic, hold hands, and stick together.
Be aware of wonder. Remember the little seed in the plastic cup? The roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows how or why, but we are all like that.

Goldfish and hamsters and white mice and even the little seed in the plastic cup - they all die. So do we.

And then remember the book about Dick and Jane and the first word you learned, the biggest word of all: LOOK.

Everything you need to know is in there somewhere. The Golden Rule and love and basic sanitation. Ecology and politics and sane living.

Think of what a better world it would be if we all - the whole world had cookies and milk about 3 o'clock every afternoon and then lay down with our blankets for a nap. Or if we had a basic policy in our nation and other nations to always put things back where we found them and cleaned up our own messes. And it is still true, no matter how old you are, when you to out into the world, it is best to hold hands and stick together.

The Value of a Memory

2008-04-10T07:37:00.000-07:00

My computer was down for a few days. I ended up talking to technical support to see what I could do to bring my computer back to like. After trying several things, the tech told me that he thought that my hard drive might be ruined and that my files and photo were most likely lost.

I was devastated. I have been scanning in my families photos and putting them on family websites and CDs. There were a lot of photos that were on my computer that had not been backed up anywhere. I did not realize how much value those photos held for me until I thought that they were gone for ever. Thankfully, we had a good friend that was able to help us fix our computer. Nothing was lost. Everything is now backed up in several places, but I am grateful for the experience because now I know how precious those photos truly are.

A Day at the Playground

2008-03-26T12:44:00.000-07:00

The weather has finally started to get warmer. Yea! Yesterday I took my two little ones and their friends to the park. After smearing the who lot with sunscreen, I sat back soaked in the warmth of the sun and enjoyed the sound of children's laughter. It doesn't get much better than this. :D