Hendrickson Blog

I believe our adventure through time has taken a most serious turn

2012-01-25T16:55:00.000-07:00

Neve and Sam were eating lunch and talking and I heard her say "Serious Dude?"

I laughed and left the room in just enough time to hear Sam say "Nevey's nibbles are so yummy!"

What the crap? Nibble is a popular word in our house ever since Neve had her fit about being called a nibble. I though at first he said Nipples and was glad to know it wasn't that but then again Neve keeps saying butt cheeks (I know I can thank Finlay for that one). She is loving the farting and pooping talk right now and I think told Angi the other day that she was going to poop on her knee. Also glad she didn't on that one too.

The kids got their haircut yesterday so I thought I would take a picture of Neves hair w/out any food or snarls in it.   Sam appeared out of his mop of hair and got his baby face back. Ella got all her chlorinish locks cut off. I hated to let her do it since her hair grows so slow but she is thrilled that now I can't fix her hair. I still chase her w/the brush just to scare her though. Neve's nightmare would be a room full of brushes and combs!

I backed up into my own garage today but I feel like it was Neve's fault. She was demanding her headphones while I had the car in reverse with my foot on the brake to wait for the door to go up and my foot came off a little when I leaned back to shut her giant mouth up w/some headphones. I said a choice Shit word and Logan didn't know whether to laugh or cry (he wanted to laugh at how dumb that looked but gets so upset when I swear, I would say when anyone swears but it is usually me so I have to be honest).   After I swore, I laughed at my stupidity and then took 20 minutes to bend the door enough to put it up by hand so I could get them to school. Only 20 minutes late!
The door guy came out to fix it and found some other problems not related to my idiot self so I am just pretending I was being proactive in keeping my garage door running well.   I'm a clumsy disaster today and I am not sure what in the heck is going on. I hit my finger w/a hammer while fixing some moulding and then picked up a bungee cord outside but one end was stuck so I started walking w/it just as I realized it was stuck but at that very moment it came loose and flew up to hit me in the face. I just have days like this every once in a while and I know not to wear flip flops on those days.

Some NBA players on the tube yesterday informed me that it is mean to use the word gay for anything you consider lame or stupid but I am wondering how they are making the lame and stupid feel by their message?   I use the word Retard sometimes and I guess I should stop that too but I in no way think of any certain kind of people when I say the words. I used DB the other day and got some sideways glances. Now seriously who can that offend? besides of course the referee I said it about, but he didn't hear me.
I may just need to stop talking but when I try to not talk people think I am mad because I was born w/this face I got from my Mom. The ornery looking one (not ornery Mom, ornery face).

For those of you enjoying the new Norwex awesome cleaning stuff (yes worth every penny), I just found a good way to store the little suckers so they are easily accessible but out of my way and out of sight. I love 3M hooks.

The sun is on my side and takes me for a ride

2012-01-20T17:17:00.000-07:00

Logan decided to have a bucket full of friends come over

I caught them doorbell ditching and made them go in the backyard where they would bother less people.

Funny thing that Logan wasn't the one ringing the bells but I am positive it was his plan.

He thinks he is so funny, and at least one adult at my house found it highly entertaining too.

You know who you are!

and then Nellies half bucket of kids and 1/3 of Sarahs came to play w/various children in my home

and then a few neighbors for Sam and when his third friend showed up he said to them "okay I cannot play with all of you at once so one of you is gonna have to go home". He wasn't trying to be rude but I think he just felt overwhelmed w/entertaining so many kids. I told him that wasn't nice to say that so he let them all stay but while they are out enjoying the winter air, here he sits (below) watching some teeny bopper show.

He played for a solid hour out there but I think the pressure got to him. Ella took on his burden happily.
I think someone counted and there were 15 kids in the backyard and an Atti inside being a hermit. This takes me back to they days when I used to be insane and tended so many little kids. I actually like them to have so many kids to play w/because then they can play basketball and stuff like that and they usually stay outside. I do hate when they all get thirsty though because my top rack in the dishwasher gets full before the bottom. I hate that and don't like to be wasteful and run a half full dishwasher.

I went to Chick-fil-a and the cow or should I say guy dressed up as a cow was there. Neve was so scared! She grabbed onto me for dear life. I walked to the table w/the tray of food w/her attached to my leg, she was not touching the floor. I assume I looked somewhat like a mother baboon w/her cling on. Neve told me that she would not be scared of the cow once the guy took the costume off.   So she is smart enough to figure out that it is just a regular fella in there yet she is terrified. She is jacked up.   She has that same love hate w/Winnie.

Ella had her first swim meet last night and did a good job. It was a mini meet so I think that was good for her first time to not freak her out too much. She was so anxious before each of her events but swam great. She just has to work on her dives and turns and she will smoke some of those kids. I was impressed w/how long she can swim. I dont know that I would even do a lap w/out resting. Swimming wipes you out!
I forgot my camera and I was a timer anyway so wouldn't have gotten good shots. I was the lucky girl that got next to that parent that talks non stop about their kids like they are so perfect. I so wish I could have used my iPod to drown out the bragging.   Ughhh! If you are someone who does this, please stop, it is so annoying!

Last: If you do not watch Parenthood, you are missing out! Best show on TV!
The END

8-6-7-5-3-0-9

2012-01-12T14:19:00.001-07:00

Think she's too young for an iPhone?

Nobody makes me bleed my own blood - nobody!

2012-01-07T21:33:00.000-07:00

Neve for some reason loves Logan to babysit her. She thinks he is so cool and he is very cute w/her when he doesn't have any friends around to distract him from her.

She does this thing where if you are sitting in a chair she wants, she just climbs in and then starts pushing whoever was already there and screaming that they are "squishing her"!

The girl is really getting much more manageable but she has a ways to go!

Dave is carrying tiny Tim into his basketball game so that his cutest little Nikes ever don't get wet.

I suppose him being so small has some benefits. Dave told the other kids yesterday that Sams skin is so brown because he is so small and the color is more concentrated. I said it is because he was over cooked! Waiting til his due date to be born. Whats that crap?

and FINALLY, some snow that these girls can go out and play in. Neve eats the snow from the bottom of her boots when she gets in the house. Yuck!

Just got home from the finals in Logans Futsal tournament and I know its not right for a Mom to feel this way but I was really struggling to not swear in a loud yelling voice because I am not really a yeller. Swearing is a thing I try to overcome but now, yelling swear words would be really different for me. Then I hate to even admit this but I secretly wanted Logan to get a yellow card by just laying a kid out! (yes I know its bad but the kid would have had it coming, I hate that some kids get away w/all the pushing, holding, and tripping).

I get really stressed out watching sports, I'll admit it. Jazz games even give me such anxiety.

Anyway, they didn't beat the team and ended up in 2nd place but the score was 2 to 1 and they played their little guts out. 2 games tonight for Logan and then off to a Basketball one that I will miss because my putting my children to bed at a decent time duty calls. Well, that and I have to get up at a ghastly hour for a meeting. Boo, someone tell the Stake to do stuff after church, not before! Boo again!

I tried to give my body a little break this week because I was thinking it might deserve it but I just couldn't stand it anymore and went out and shoveled the driveway. Ahh it felt so good.

Sleeping I like. Resting, not so much!

I'm not crazy, or anything

2012-01-05T17:29:00.000-07:00

Perspective

So I just realized I forgot to give Ella one of her Christmas gifts. It was in a really junky box so Dave didn't realize it was there and I was too overwhelmed to remember until I was laying in bed last night thinking.

I was thinking about all the things I have in my life and how I have a great life and I hope that I never stop remembering this. I just never want to be one of those people who are too busy to sit back and enjoy the blessings they have in their life. Poor ME-ers I call them and I feel bad for them too, for what they are missing out on while they complain.

Everyone has trials and some are more obvious than others!

My trials are odd and I don't understand but I have learned not to ask Why?

I do hate them. BUT,

They make me recognize the abundance in my life at the same time so do I really hate them?

I didn't have an easy time getting the four kids I have here but once I did I realized the timing was always perfect. I suppose someone else knows what they are doing.

I took some prostaglandins yesterday to start a missed miscarriage.

Yes, Again! (this time @ 11 weeks w/a 6 week sized little guy)

Dave and I were not really planning this baby but lets get serious, we do know how babies are made.

But the odds of me getting pregnant w/out medication is pretty slim.

So it was a surprise, especially to me!

So it was kind of nice to not have to "try" to get pregnant and we were happy even if it gave us an odd # (Sam doesn't like odd).

Dave was excited and I was super anxious and not my regular garden variety anxiousness either.

Something didn't feel right so I insisted he not tell anyone. He thought I was just being crazy. I don't like pity or for people to look at me weird or act weird because they don't know what to say! It all makes me feel worse. People who know me usually know what to say or not to say and they know I will talk about it if I want to so I guess what I am saying is that I was protecting my own emotions and in hind sight, for very good reason. I couldn't have handled other people being excited and then let down like I was, that makes it worse for me even if I have no control over how others feel. I kind of did in this scenario.

This time has been so different for me and while I was sad and disappointed I instantly felt okay about it all. Okay not instantly, after bawling for 5 hours straight and taking NyQuil to sleep.

Despite the emotions I really was okay

but w/me its like flood gates and they have to run dry before I can stop.

I was telling Angi today that I am a talker healer which means I do better to get over things when I can talk about them. I don't bottle up or hold back well. Kind of a tell it as it is person but I am very secretive whenever I have been first pregnant. I suppose because I am such an open book I like to have one thing every now and then that is just my own.

I have thought so much about those women who go through this over and over and never get a child and that makes me sad for them and grateful that is not my scenario.

I am so glad to have these four little faces that need me to get up every day and take care of them. Sometimes I probably wouldn't get up when things kind of suck! I like sleep!

Sam consoled me last Thursday right after I found out the baby most likely had stopped growing 5 weeks ago by coming in every hour and saying in his sweetest voice "Mom, you feeling any better?" and "Mom I sure hope you get feeling better soon". This child is the soothing balm I have needed both times and I will never forget his thoughtfulness even if he had no clue what he was doing for me. Last miscarriage that little sucker had me laughing, crying, and probably snorting all at the same time & he wasn't even 2 yrs old. The kids have just all thought I was sick because I wanted to save them the heartache it would cause (especially Logan and Ella). I don't believe in shielding kids from all disappointment and sorrow but since this kind is so hard for even adults to ever process I just felt it better to let them save adult sorrow for adulthood if I could.

I learned some neat things about little growing babies that I didn't know before and I will save all gory details for anyone who wants them but I absolutely am amazed by the human body and its ability to create life and then create it over and over again. I'm so glad that although my body struggles to get it right it did a pretty good job 4 times w/that big job.

My body is somewhat retarded in the ways of being female but I will give it credit where credit is due. It responds amazingly well to modern medicine. I'm grateful for that if I have to have the issues I do. Plus, seriously who doesn't love a good anesthesiologist?

Didn't need one this time but still love them!

I have some great people who I don't think are really trusting me that I am Okay and really I am a bit surprised myself! I am good, it sucks, but I'm okay. A miscarriage is no ones preference but I feel like I have a good perspective this time plus I just have too many people counting on me to fall apart right now. Just kidding! Maybe its just another blessing that emotionally I am just doing better this time.

Maybe I'm doing something right.

I had less months invested this time which for sure makes it different

and those who think that makes no difference, I beg to differ.

It makes a difference!

Lastly as dumb as men might be sometimes when it comes to dealing w/women and don't worry I could flip that around and it would still be true, Dave is amazing! There when I need him and leaves me alone when I don't. He learned early how to tell when I want him to scram. In physical pain=get away from me and especially don't talk or tell me how big my contractions were on the machine/ In emotional pain=enter at your own risk and bring an absorbent shirt!

Just got a delicious surprise at my door! Thanks!

Lastly lastly because she just reminded me, I know a lot of really awesome people and I am lucky to have the friends that I do. I appreciate them more than I could or really would ever express (only because it might involve lots of hugging--not a big fan but my YW are helping me get over that LOL)!

We surprise the kids w/their airline tickets to Disneyworld and Sam ran out of the room crying. I was worried he was such a brat but come to find out he was just so sad that we weren't going to Disneyland! I think this trip to D-world is actually cheaper than our normal ones to D-land. Dave flies so much to far off lands and then we reap the rewards of sky miles. Woo hoo!

Grody to the Max

2012-01-01T13:59:00.001-07:00

So I thought I would start this to be Christmas post w/something that makes me sick. I think it every time I see one and just realized it about myself the other day. I get such a sick feeling like if I were eating something I would have to immediately stop for fear of barfing. I hate random mattresses! I think my hatred and phobia is worse than my phobia of crumbs and old refrigerator condiments. Whenever I see people moving I get so sickened if I see a mattress in the back of their truck, especially if it is a Queen or King one. I hate seeing them on the curb for bulk trash and I feel sorrow for the guys who will have to touch it. One time in college Dave and his roommates had a mattress they found on the side of the road they used to lounge in their living room on. I refused to lay on that thing or even touch it w/my bare skin. I think I felt like I needed Flea Bag Protection. Still do when it comes to random mattresses. I'm weird about blankets too.

Anyway, enough about me
My kids always get an ornament on Christmas Eve and this time I wised up and had the year printed right on them so I don't have to write it w/marker somewhere not noticeable later.

On Christmas Eve we invited the Grandmas and Grandpas over for dinner and to spend the evening w/us which always includes Mr. Kruegers Christmas (I didn't cry this year-might be a first)

Anyway we had ribs and lots of good food but this year Ella asked them all what their favorite Christmas food is.

Grandma H.-Cheese soup

Grandpa H.-Steamed Pudding

Grandma B.-Fruitcake (GAG!)

Grandpa B.-Carrot Pudding

Adam-Likes all food if it doesn't have nuts or coconut.

Logan played a Christmas song on his clarinet and didn't honk it a single time, which was surprising.

Ella played Silver Bells very well and could actually play it without the music. She is getting pretty good at the piano.

Sam just entertains w/his sheer good looks!

Christmas Morning 2011

The kids waiting on Christmas morning.

Logan didn't ask for anything this year and just wanted to be surprised.

He got Skylanders and a Nook. Slam dunk Santa!

Ella asked for Kanani (she wanted her ever since Dave and I went to Hawaii last year) and I bet you can't tell by this hilarious face that she got exactly what she asked for plus a jeep for the doll too. I will admit that Kanani might just be my favorite AG doll too. Love that brown skin!

Sam got Imiginext CARS 2 toys and a 3DS. Which also came w/some Skylanders so maybe they could finally have something the right ages they could play together. They are loving it!

Neve got more Calico Critters that she didn't ask for but really all she asked for was a Dog house so whatcha gonna do? I love them and Santa made my dreams for her come true!

Dave bought me more than I bought him as usual but I think he plans it that way so its all good. I found my orange camera and he bought me a new orange shuffle to replace my stolen one. He also bough me a Nook w/an orange cover so if you find any orange things, feel free to just assume they are mine!

"We're going to have a tasty roasted boy today!"

2011-12-19T16:33:00.001-07:00

I decided to let the kids have a boys vs girls vs triplets gingerbread contest

Logan was being reprimanded for putting the frosting on w/his fingers

because he always makes the biggest mess out of everything

Dave is always a sucker and helps the kids but then again I was helping the 3 yr old crew. I volunteer for that age groups so I can pretend it is because they are so little that their house is horrible so no one realizes its me who is a gingerbread decorating retard.

They mostly ate the candy and had to give up some of their pieces to the girls who kept dropping and shattering theirs. The triplets didn't mind as long as no one took their candy. They would lick every candy before sticking it to the house. They ended up w/more of a lean-to.

The boys won for best construction. Who-da known that Logans messy method actually made a more sturdy house because the frosting wasn't so thick that it actually dried.

The girls won for best use of materials because they literally used every piece of candy

they could get their hands on.

So below ended up happening because the candy was just too heavy

I really hate making gingerbread houses but the kids love it so much. I laid in bed last night just thinking about them all sitting on the counter top and couldn't sleep because I knew the kids would eat candy for breakfast if they stayed sitting there. I don't like getting out of bed once I have gotten in so Dave was kind enough to go chuck them for me so I could fall asleep stress free. Mid-night Sam came in and wouldn't keep his boney knees out of my sides so I went to his bed to sleep.

He likes to sleep by me so I think he peed in my bed just out of spite.

I should have peed in his too! but then again that is just punishing me twice.

This morning Sam wakes in a stupor and goes into the bathroom and then comes out to me and says "uh mom, I need to tell you something. I took off my pants and my undies and I put them in the toilet instead of the hamper!"
Later he says something funny so Dave says "Sam do you know why we named you Sam? Because it rhymes w/ham!" and Sam said "yep and ham rhymes w/turkey!!!" (cackle cackle cackle) "jusss kiddin, I was just tryin to make you guys laugh". He turns 6 on Wednesday and I don't like it at ALL!

But before you come to any conclusions

2011-12-05T15:34:00.001-07:00

If you look down and on your feet you see either of these,

Please remove them, go put them in the garbage and never choose your own shoes again!

Shape-ups are not an alternative to exercising, nor is your velour sweat suit while shopping. Sorry People!
I enjoy mocking things like this but what I do not enjoy is shopping in stores like these (Ross, TJ Maxx)

I'm not sure what is wrong w/me but these stores make me feel irritated, always have! I don't like having to search through things to find something to spend my money on. I feel like they should pay me for suffering through the mess. I think these stores are messy and I don't like that either. I know you can get good things because I have seen them on people but it's just not my cup of tea.

So I took the beast out today and went to Toys-r-us to buy an umbrella stroller (she's in that stage where she suddenly thinks she needs me to carry her) because I don't own one. I own big fancy ones but I wanted to go to the mall and jogging strollers are not cut out of that. She was actually surprisingly good on that shopping trip, must've been the new stroller. Or, maybe my Coke she was drinking! You do what you have to in order to get by and I'm on my last leg here.
(He returns tomorrow and then maybe I will go)
So this funny little comparison, you will laugh as soon as you read it.
Valley Fair Mall vs. Fashion Place Mall
I went to the VF last week and took a gander inside......complete and total crap........still!
Went to the FP today and you'd be surprised to know that the experience was somewhat different. ha ha
I prefer the FP by a landslide for the mall itself and the stores inside but there are a lot of snobbish people wandering about, I secretly want to trip them when they walk by but if they were to fall on me I'd surely be crushed by their enormous egos.
So two things came to my attention while shopping (two that I am recalling anyway, I hope more came to my attention or I've been hanging out w/Angi too much)
Mrs. Fields cookies are highly overrated (but their Coke was good) No joke the Sugar ones kind of have a fishy taste and I don't know about you but I do not like fish cookies & for that price. I also should have been paid to eat that cookie. I kept eating it though of course in hopes that the next bite wouldn't be so weird. It never got better right down to the last crumb
Okay lets be serious, I left the crumbs in the bag to be disposed of properly
Second
I am completely and utterly insane
I went into Hot Topic and looked around and I could smell a smell that I didn't care for (nor would anyone else) and I looked up and saw that the worker had huge gauges in his ears. I was sure that was the culprit of the smell so I immediately left the store. I'm still convinced I'm right.
Those suckers stink!
So I let my kids decorate the tree and to be honest you cannot really tell a difference whether it was them or me which is not good but its true. See how that cute little christmas clock is tucked way back behind the tree. It was my Grandmas and it plays a very loud christmas tune every hour on the hour. Dave hates it so so much therefore I put it where he cannot easily turn it off. He has been so lucky this last week and a half. Pretty much every time he has been Skype-ing the kids the clock goes off just for him. It makes me laugh!

She has an addiction to anything on TV or Netflix and she tells me if its on Demand or not.
Guess I'll just toss a universal remote into her stocking!
Neve started her first chocolate Advent Calendar and polished it off on day 2

How 'bout unabashedly bawling your eyes out

2011-11-27T16:03:00.001-07:00

I am thankful that Thanksgiving is over!
Hows that for enjoying a Holiday!
I know people feel like this holiday is just skated right over because of Christmas but honestly I can see why. A whole lot of work and for what?   I am so sick of rolls by the the time I get to dinner that I don't even want to eat anything, especially the rolls I slaved over.   I didn't even eat a single noodle this year. That is one of my family's weird foods (as Dave claims).
I only like a few things about Thanksgiving and they are my moms stuffing that has sausage in it, that I put up my Christmas stuff and that Black Friday is moments behind dinner.   So I suppose I am saying that I like one thing about it really. So maybe I don't care for the Turkey holiday much at all.   Underrated?    Nah! Is this somehow blasphemous?   Sorry Pilgrims and Indians, I think your holiday got lost more on the food than the actual message behind your feast.

I am worn out and Dave has only been gone a few days. I had to cut my black friday shopping short a little in the ante meridiem because I had to run him to the airport.   Betcha can't guess where he went?

Today I had my own thanksgiving when I realized how Thankful I am for Dave. Not that I don't normally realize this but it was especially apparent today how much I rely on him & how good he is w/the kids. I had a meeting this morning that went until about 15 minutes before sacrament started. So I rushed home knowing full well we would be late. I pull into the garage and my kids opened the door.   A little tear came to my eye as I saw them all decked out in their church duds ready to go. Blessed, blessed Ella!   What an amazing girl she is!   She is responsible well beyond her years. Neve is lucky to have such a great big sister.

Logan surprised me this week too but I think he is a butt at the same time. He tended Neve for me and took care of her so well. Fed her breakfast (the chick wont even eat breakfast for me or Dave) and had her dressed (in matching clothes) when I got home.   I think he has been pretending to not really know how to tend her so that Ella gets stuck doing it. Smart boy I guess but the secret is out now! Neve told me that she was going to turn into a boy next week after spending the day playing w/the boys! I kind of don't blame her.

I had a crazy good time shopping w/Angi and Keri staring at 6 pm Thursday. Angi and I love it but it was Keris first time. I think it might still be growing on her! We were glad she came.
Angi is moving soon & it is becoming a reality to me & I don't like it at all. Some tears are sure to be shed! Crap I started crying right now just typing that out. I really need to go to bed early tonight I'm thinking.

I ended out my weekend at a Fry Fest w/some good friends and had a great time clogging my arteries w/oil and filling muh belly w/crap that tasted oh so good. We missed Dave but we get along okay when he is gone as long as its not for too long.   We do like him to come back!

I kind of taught Ella to make cookies but she actually did it all herself all while letting Sam and Neve help. Kids helping is such a pain!

This week I get to do all the sports including coaching some Basketball. I think I will pawn that off on Logan. I feel bad I have to miss the RS dinner but its the price you pay I suppose for having more than one child.

Why am I covered in feathers?

2011-11-18T23:13:00.001-07:00

Went to see the latest Twilight Movie last night so I thought I might review it:
AWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Holy CRap!!!! Worst MOVIE EVER!!!! but hilarious just the same, once you got through the awkward hour of love making. UUUUncomfortable! I don't get people who let their girls watch this or read this, sorry if this is me judging here but I am no prude and this was really awkward to watch. Breaking beds? What the? Waaaaaay to sensual for teens and really anyone!
I howled a lot through the movie anytime the wolves were and I am pretty sure the lady next to me who was totally into it hated my guts. At one point we were all laughing so hard I'm surprised one of my sisters didn't pee their pants. My sandwich from Paradise Bakery Cafe was really good though.
Really I went w/fun people so that was the only way this movie is doable.
Sorry if your a lover of this flick..........ahhhhh, no I'm not, still thought it was terrible!

We are driving in the car and Sam says "mom do you think they will make a toy story 4 and buster will die?" I say "probably not, why?". "Well he just hasn't died yet so I think they should have him die in #4". I say "well that would be sad, dont you think?" He says in a tone like I am ridiculous "uh mom, haven't you heard of resurrection?"

In the bathroom at the story Neve is peeking through the cracks at Sam going to the bathroom so he says in his sweetest parenting voice "Nevey we don't do that cause its not nice" so she lays on the floor and looks from underneath. He says in his losing his patience sweetest parenting voice "Nevey we dont look under the door while people are going, its not good manners." I say "Neve get off the floor that is disgusting" and she jumps up. Sam says from in the bathroom "Mom, I can teach her cause I pretty much know everything there is to know about bathrooms!"

And the porcupine talks to himself

2011-11-12T22:22:00.001-07:00

Love this of Logan except he looks old

Aimee took our pics and these are some of my favorites but that I didn't get put on canvas or blown up. They just each tell me some thing and give away personality traits that might only mean something to me. Oddly enough Ella smiled normal and didn't really have a bad picture in the bunch. This is a rare day for her.

Sams private shoot just w/his mom

Sam pretty much kills me in all of these. What a Doofus!

On a heavier note:
I feel like I just gained 1500 pounds. I have a giant weight on my shoulders and am very nervous about it.
I'm not sure if I am just tired or what but I just feel like bawling.   I don't like screwing up and I hate being in charge.   They called and asked us to say the Sacrament prayers too and I said yes of course, cause I always do but inside I wanted to say why don't you just have me give the talks and do the Sunday School lesson and then count the tithing too after church while I am at it (although Dave already does that).   I think that may have been a pity party for a moment. I hate praying in public!

I am positive that I cannot fill the shoes of Hillari but I imagine I will just wear them out differently. I sure hope that the YW and mainly their parents will be patient with me for a while, or for as long as my "term" is!

I never thought I would be one of those old lady idiots who "claim" they love the Young Women but I ate my thoughts and I do love them. Every last little dirt bag!   They are amazing and they aren't perfect but heck, neither am I and they seem to tolerate me okay.   I was blown away in the summer at girls camp at how kind they are to each other. I do not remember being that kind. Every one of them bore testimony of the things they believed, I never did that. I was the girl that everyone sat staring at waiting to end the meeting but not wanting to end it in case I was just slow to get up. I never did.   I am a very private person in my spirituality and being the Mia maid leader has made me have to come out of that shell a little, more that I am comfortable with. I heard someone once say if you are comfortable, you aren't growing. I'm about as uncomfortable as it gets at the moment.

Dave has had this evil smirk on his face ever since I was delivered the news. He is getting quite the kick out of it. Even though I want to smack him, I am very grateful he is the Dad that he is because I don't worry about anything with the kids even if I am not able to do it. He is a better Mom than me sometimes (but I do more yard work)

I remember my mom being the best YW president I ever knew, oh wait, I still feel that way.   She was amazing and she was so patient. She never yelled or even raised her voice and she loved the guts right out of those girls and not just the ones w/her DNA. I get that from her, not wanting to call attention to people because you have to get loud and yell. I'm more of a peanut gallery in the back corner type of girl. I am not sure how she did it all w/8 kids and a husband who worked 24/7. She claims she had wonderful women to work along side her. I am banking on that.

I am sad however to not have that constant interaction w/the current leaders in YW. You get to know people on such different levels when you work w/them and camp w/them and sometimes pee your pants w/them. I love these chicks and the girls I know are going to be sad about that too. I think that is a bigger part of my emotions than the stress. I realize you can still be friends but we all know it just isn't the same.

I have had many moments of inspiration in the last few weeks pertaining to this new calling and I am grateful for that or I am sure I would have to up my Zoloft just to cope. Ahh maybe I'll do that anyway!

So here's to a new and probably very wild ride!

Neve: "mom move your big tush"
I had just taken Neve to the bathroom at Walmart and then resumed shopping and Sam says "mom I gotta go to the bathroom" so I said "why didn't you go when we were just over there, I hate when you guys do that" He replies "Well I didn't have to go at that point"

Space walk, it's like a space walk with the corresponding weight loss

2011-10-30T21:34:00.000-06:00

Neve Turned 3

and got a car and a trailer w/Calico Critters (which are the cutest toys on the planet)

She also got to move into a booster seat.....Yipee! Weird, I have never had a kid move into a booster w/out a baby in a car seat to still buckle up.

I found this note taped to my door the other day when I came up from doing the elliptical

Funny Boy!

Dave got to carve pumpkins w/the kids today and not a moment too soon since tomorrow is the day!

Sam w/a very natural smile

Logan w/monster looking long legs! (I hope its the angle)

Go Cougs

We finally got around to doing Neve's Birthday cake today. It feels like her real birthday was so long ago even though it wasn't. Busy week I suppose. I got her an ice cream cake from Baskin Robbins and I may or may not have had a kids mint chocolate chip cone when I ordered the cake and then when I picked it up.

Sometimes it is nice to be alone! I also had a killer deep tissue massage that was wonderfully painful. Man I was spoiled this week. Actually the massage was a gift from Angi from Christmas that we barely got around to using. I also got my first facial. Has anyone ever had one of these? I thought I might freak out! All that hot steam blowing in my face and then wrapping my whole face in a hot towel except my nose. Have they seen the size of these nostrils? There is a reason I am a mouth breather. It was good once I talked myself out of a freak out attack. Dave was jealous of the massage. He needs one on his jacked up leg.

My mom got Neve the matching nightgown to Ellas and Neve wanted her picture taken in it w/Ella.

Neve had a great party and we love her even when she's not too lovable.

Dave turns on the car and the radio is on. Neve says"Dad, what band is this?"

I'm dappled and drowsy and ready to sleep

2011-10-25T15:41:00.001-06:00

My crazy month and a half is about to come to a close. I'm sure some busy work will find its way to me!
I'm still deciding if this will be the longest post or if I will break them up a bit.
Just decided....Long post wins! I'll just get er dun!!!
I went to a girls weekend w/my sisters and some friends and we had a good time. A few of us went on a run in Midway for a little pre Ragnar change of scenery training. In hind sight, I'm not sure it helped that much.

WHY????

Axel, Keenan, Logan

Adam in Moms veil

The next weekend was my Mom and Dads big event and it went over great. I didn't see many of the people and spent most of my time doing food stuff but it wasn't my party so that is were I belonged. I was grateful for Angi staying and manning the kitchen though so we didn't have so much cleanup. She didn't realize when she came to see the decor that she would get stuck there. Sign of a true friend I suppose. Speaking of Decor, they did such a great job and it was so cute but I don't have many pics. I have to get those from Susie Q.
My Mom and Dad are better than YOURS!
I hate those kind of bumper stickers, we all know the ones about the grand kids being cuter than your, I want to punch those people "in tha face"!

Next Day : We took the kids to Black Island Farms. Finally we got Logan to his pick of place for his B-day almost a month later. It was fun but not like the 2 years past. I needed my Boos (ha ha parks and Rec) and Dave wanted to boo hoo that he was forced through the torture of it all. He is a champ though and a very patient man. Unfortunately the kids we took with us had not been fed lunch (tattle tattle) so we had some hungry little hippos on our hands. We finally got them food on our way home and it was a hard fought battle of whether their little bods would eat or sleep on the way home. Mostly the eat won.

Las Vegas Ragnar 2011

Matt P, Dave, Marcia, Mike, Tyler, Matt, Ron, Brent, Angi, Keri, Lisa, April

Next week: We left for the Las Vegas Ragnar at 10 a.m. Thursday morning. 5 runners and our much appreciated driver. Me, Dave, Keri, Angi, Lisa, and Brian the Chauffeur. Matt was flying in from work in Idaho. Lisa may as well have flew in too since she was on the phone the whole time.

Our "Van" Art provided by Brian

This was the most awesome and awful experience that I have had in a long long time and it is so sick and wrong but I want to go again. Of course, first I want a relaxing vacation. I cannot even write all the things that went on. Okay I don't want to write some but really the other literally I cannot write here. The team knows what I mean. I just hope that the videos of no sleep for 2 days April stay under wraps. I would love the one of Dave dancing posted though, just because I love it! It was so great! Did I say that yet. I think we learned too much about each other to not just totally love each other like family now. We got to experience the awful smells of each other too, which was the worst when the windows were down and you were stuck in the back. All BO wafting right back to you. Makes me hungry just thinking about it.

Lisa keeping our runners from getting hit w/all this traffic in the middle of no where

Dave/Lisa Handoff

I had the mother of a 3rd leg in the dark on a very rocky terrain. I had no choice but to just keep running. I had my very first 5 trip out of a trip trip but I didn't fall nor sprain an ankle. Someone kindly reminded me that I only sprain my ankles on flat ground, which I did just about do on Leg one.

Dave being the nurse to Matt. I was his emotional support

The girls: Lisa, Angi, April, Keri, Marcia

Us at the end w/our typical BYU fan. Wish I had that Utah fan pic of the cross dresser

Our van 2 got screwed over in the vehicle department and ended up w/no AC and no windows that rolled down and an alternator that just kept eating their batteries. I still feel bad about that! They really may have suffered more riding w/our rowdy crew though. Its Sixes I suppose.
We got medals at the end which I find very non useful. I wondered if i could melt mine down and make something useful like a spoon from it. I threw away my last medal I got from some sort of race. Guess I could at least recycle this one. Sam took it to show and tell today at school which i thought was cute.

I don't even have time to have an adult Halloween party this year, which I am sad about. I have had 3 youth halloweenish things and then a school one, a family one this weekend along w/the ward one which includes a trunk or treat. I hate trunk or treats, I think they are for the fat and lazy but if I am fat and lazy I still hate them so I change my mind and say they are for the lame!
I guess I have to do Neves pty on Sunday since I am out of other days and then its Halloween and this year I am saying GOOD RIDDANCE to you OCTOBER!!! First I need to go get some halloween candy and get my kids some costumes. Details, details.

Post Script-My little Nevey turns 3 tomorrow. Where does time go? September and October gobble it up, that's where!!!!
Post Script Surplus- I added some excerpts from the book but mostly on us psychotic racers will find them entertaining or even understandable.

Lisa: Just gotta keep moving cause if the tiredness hits you, thats when you get tired.

April: Seriously if I get hit, I'm gonna die

Brent to Keri: I don't think you need anymore wine - you are already kinda whooooo

Brian to Keri: I feel like I've known you pretty well since day 1

Dave: Next time Brian is bringing the fryer!
Ron to Keri: Externally I'm fine, but internally that hurt.

Keri: I'm just gonna strip down right here.
April: I can't do that - the rolls make me hungry

Dave: Whats the ending coordinates of her run
Angi: I think it ends right in hell

Lisa: look at that girl she is doing so good
April: tell her she sucks though, just to break her spirit

Matt: I tried some Brooks on but they were too provocative for me

Matt: If I am standing there stopped, I want you to swerve over and hit me!

I hate to leave you but I really must say

2011-10-24T22:06:00.002-06:00

The last time I felt this tired was right after I had Neve!!!

"Resentments are the rocket fuel that lives in the tip of my saber."

2011-10-05T15:16:00.002-06:00

This is sure to be a WINNER! or to cause a major case of Heartburn.
How can one go wrong w/Coca Cola?

Either way it will be worth the effort.
My kitchen is a freaking disaster but hey what are kitchens for? I started out the festivities by adding four cups of coke and enchilada sauce to my food processor to then realize as it came pouring out the sides that if the liquid surpasses the little neck in it you have filled it too full. 2 cups too full to be exact, all over the outside of the processor and the counter. Boo! I moved on to the trusty blender but forgot to put the lid on all the way. We all know how that ends. Poorly.   Then I dropped a large knife but luckily jumped right as the tip of the blade hit where my foot had been standing.
I did sneak a can or two of the coke just as a reward.   AHHHHH (that's for Susan)
WHY THIS GIANT MESS U WONDER?
My parents 50th wedding anniversary is coming up next week so we (their lovely children) are throwing them a reception, copying some stuff from their original one.
Now I just need to get my butt going on that slideshow I promised and haven't completed yet.   We are doing a dinner before for their close friends and family which if you know anything about my family is going to be quite large.   Susan sent me an invite to the dinner which is lucky since there will be a lack of food w/out me! (:   Pork Barbacoa Salads won out and I either volunteer to do food or decor. We all know I take the food any day but I will enlist Nellie and Amy for help. I am not creative enough for decor. Sarah is on Cake duty (glad that's not me). Nellie got desserts along w/pedestals she made for them and Susan pretty much does everything else. We will just boss Amy & Kerry (Margaret actually) and make them do the stuff we don't want to. Ha ha, just kidding.

Wish us luck!!! and this post is not a general invitation to all who read to attend the dinner unless you bring me a present. ha ha

Logan told me this on the way to Basketball practice last night.
"Hey mom, me and my friends were being weird today and telling people our names were Raul and Chi Chi and we were telling other people that was their names too and we told this one kid he was chi chi and he said F-U to us but he used the real words."   I said "logan was he hispanic?" He said "yes why?"   So I informed him what ChiChis means in slang spanish, he looked kind of embarrassed but had that funny look of cleverness and enlightenment on his face at the same time.    Sam starts yelling out the car to other cars "Hey Chi chi!" I tell him to stop but that makes him do it more and more and giggle. He yells out the car to a man "Hey you got big chi chi's?" giggle giggle giggle.   I rolled up and locked the windows!    I decided it was too hard for me to parent in this situation when I was so busy laughing my head off so I took care of the problem the best way I knew how.

Only here for the ride

2011-10-01T12:35:00.000-06:00

Me and my sisters and Harold spent some time w/Erasure and all the gay men in Utah Wednesday night.

It was a blast and unlike Iggy Pop, Andy Bell still has a good enough physique to remove his shirt.

They gay men went CARAZAY! I wish I would have brought my regular camera so I could have taken better sneaky shots of all the ridiculous outfits worn there and the killer hairdos which I call hair-don'ts.

It was lots of fun & a few of my family learned just how high pitched I can scream.

I love blowing out eardrums!

I had a little babysitting party yesterday and these were just the girls.

They boys were lounging about somewhere

Every time I cannot seem to find Neve in the house, this is where she is and what she is doing

and yes, she is usually just in her panties. At this age it is cute. If I did it that would not be good.

Logans Birthday was last Saturday (the 24th)

He turned 11 and I have been married for 12 years (just reminding myself)

Logan got a fish from Nellie and the crew for his B-day. I think it's his best present ever!

He named it Bronco

It's a Beta

Once I bought Betas for all my nieces and nephews for christmas (thats allotta betas)

We were going out of town for a few days so I turned off the heat

Not one of my best ideas (like boiling a corndog)

We returned to a lot of frozen dead betas

Surprisingly after the house warmed up all but two of them came back to life

WEIRD FISH

Logan wanted FIFA 12 so he got and IOU for his day since it didn't come out until Tuesday

You know your kid is old when they are okay w/that

The kids gave him some guns I found that shoot those little water beads you put in vases

and a BYU pillow pet. He is pretty easy to please w/gifts.

He also got the Costco cake but I paired it w/the Costco Tiramisu (yum)

I made him Ribs for dinner on Sunday and Sam decided to try one after much coaxing by us.

He proclaimed it is now his first favorite food. 2nd favorite being spaghetti.

WEIRD KID

Anyway he was thrilled w/a Birthday full of food and BYU stuff. He wants to take his friends to the Haunted maze at Black Island Farms. Now I just need to find a day where it works for everyone.

Logan had a soccer game in Brigham City on his actual Birthday so he chose a restaurant on our way home since we always let the kids choose a place to eat. This might be more a gift for me since it gets me out of thinking up dinner. He wanted Olive Garden which he changed to the OG for coolness sakes but then we saw a Brick Oven. He was sold on that.
He got the kids buffet and luckily for Daves wallet Logan still is of age for the kids buffet price. Logan said "I'm gettin my moneys worth tonight"!
While we were there Sam had an emergency bathroom need, and I'm not talking #1. He didn't quite make it. I loved that I had sent Logan w/him so he was in the boys room during the events, therefore Dave had to be on clean up duty. Needless to say Dave didn't get his moneys worth on the buffet after getting his appetite suppressed. I don't do buffets generally so it really would have been and ideal time for him to have had the accident in the womens room. Oh well!!! It's great for Dads to be able to play Mom sometimes in their nasty jobs. Anyway Dave threw away the undies (which I would have also done---good call there) and Sam said "well I had 10 undies and now I have nine but there's only 7 days in a week"! Who says you don't use math in your everyday life. Counting undies comes in handy sometimes.

Neve is watching the Backyardigans in the background and they are singing "we're diggin for gold" and I keep laughing. I find that humorous!

I ain't on stupid pills!

2011-09-20T18:47:00.000-06:00

We finally opened the umbrella for the 2nd time this year but it only shaded the faraway garage door at this time of the day. Oh well, I tried! Yes, have a few balls!

I found something absolutely delicious so I had to share

for selfish reasons really

because if people don't buy a lot of it, the store I hate will stop carrying it

Its in the produce section of the store I hate

Maybe I will like them again just for this brand of dressing

we will see after I try the honey mustard

nah,

I will still hate it but it will have a redeeming quality

Neve keeps doing these sounds every time I ask her to do something as if she is totally put out. Like a sassy "aaaahhh" w/a snotty rise in volume right around the middle and then a drawn out hhhh. A sort of p-shaw will a rise in volume at the aw! I told her this morning that she couldn't have another milk until she ate something and she said "fine!".

She also says "mom, that is trouble" when she thinks something I say is not fair.

After I told her no milk she said "mom, I'm gonna call the cops and they will take you to jail". I said "oh yeah then who will take care of you?" she said "juuuuuus kiddinG!" and the new study says spongebob makes kids dumb. Ain't no dumb kids here and I love SpongeBob, he's hilarious (my 10 yr old boy humor, remember?).

Sam was complaining about dinner so Neve promptly stabbed him w/her fork. He, of course, started to cry because there were four little holes in his arm. She turns to me and says w/one eye winked and her sweetest tone of voice, "Mom should I give him a hug?"

All together we're 381 years old. We don't wait

2011-09-18T15:21:00.000-06:00

Ellas actual birthday. I thought I better hurry and get it on here before Logans B-day arrives.

She wanted the costco chocolate cake, I think after some of my cake disasters my kids wised up and go for taste vs. fun looking cakes.
I put 8 candles on her cake and luckily Norma noticed and corrected my mistake.

8 was last year, duh!

Me pretending to burn her

Sam gave her this jogging outfit for her new A.G. doll

and Neve gave her an A.G. cat

Neve would tell her what every present was before Ella opened them

The cutest little desk I have ever seen and the text book actually has information and knowledge in the cutest mini form you have ever seen. If you don't love mini stuff you won't appreciate these. Now I have to track down some mini pencils for that mini pencil box/folder and tests.

Logan gave her this chalkboard that rolls up and you can take in anywhere.

Neve promptly threw the chalk to it in the garbage after taking a bite out if it.

Whatever you do don't put the blame on you

2011-09-11T09:22:00.000-06:00

I am a mean mom and I only let my kids have B-day parties on certain birthdays (1,5,8,12,16). On the off years I let them pick 2 people and go do an activity instead. They sometimes complain until they pick their activity and realize that is more fun anyway. Ella chose Boondocks and took Faye and Chloe.

I like that she always chooses cousins. It is very fitting to her personality.

While we were at Boondocks it started raining like carazay! Sam and Logan decided to continue miniature golfing in it and got totally soaked. I knew Sam would be freezing after they were done and he was shivering when we got inside and had blue lips. Dave said "Sam you are cold because you have no meat on your bones" and he said "no, because all my meat got wet"!

You should have seen all the faces Ella was making on this mock roller coaster ride.

It scared the crap out of her!

Faye gave Ella a fairy dust necklace

and Chloe gave her a watch

today the torture will be over and she will get to open the other presents

It actually kinda tortured me too! Not one of my best plans, like Neve's B-day present I opened and played w/that I cannot wait to give her.

This is just a cute picture I took of Axel and Neve

even though it looks like she ate a pile of dirt (probably did)

Sams favorite thing to start sentences with these days "Do you realize?"

The proper order of things is often a mystery to me

2011-09-07T13:21:00.000-06:00

Sam was taking photos this morning and this was the only appropriate for blog publish one I could use.

He was chasing me around right out of the shower taking shots. It was not pretty!

I hope this is not a preview of his choice of professions when he gets old ):

Sometimes I am just mean

Ella's Birthday is on Sunday and I decided to get her gifts wrapped today while she is at school and the others are here to help w/this task they like to help w/even though I hate them helping

Logan is home w/his 3rd missed day of school in the first 3 weeks. Great start!

She hates waiting so I naturally like to make it more of a challenge for her.

I gave her a sneak peek of Neves birthday presents which is a month and a half away.

She keeps saying "Mom why did you show me those, it is all I can think about"?

She may like playing w/it more than Neve.

I like Chicken Salad Sandwiches (sans grapes--who ever thought that was a good idea should be shot).

I was just eating one so I thought I would share that tidbit of important info

On Saturday my Mom and Sisters and some of our daughters went to Swiss Days in Midway

It was fun and crowded and we saw some of the Hansens again (no Natalie though ): )

We were trying to get a move on but some of us have a hard time ever saying goodbye to those girls

They have these new American Girl-like dolls w/real people hair. I decided I was a little creeped out by them. I just don't know what kind of dirties the hair came from.

On Sunday we had the first EVER non-eventful testimony meeting

I was so disappointed!!!

Kinda makes me feel like there's no point in going to church

Dave is in LA and sending me pics of Sunsets and beaches

I kind of missed him until I realized he was a jerk!

and the pain you feel's a different kind of pain

2011-08-29T11:53:00.004-06:00

Sams first day of Kindergarten

They do a kleenex and crackers morning for the parents.
I am not a crier when it comes to sending them off to Kindergarten
BUT
I really kind of want to cry because I have to entertain the BEAST all alone nowand because its 3 more yrs until I "get" to miss her a little while she is at school
I'm kind of kidding but kind of not. I love the guts right out of her but she doesn't have a stellar personality these days and I want that perfect little angel back that I had for 2 yrs.
Where did she go?
On a good note, she was awesome w/bob today and I pushed her beyond and hour, didn't have to pee either. Not me, her! I don't struggle w/that, remember?
cute Sam doing his homework
w/non safe scissors (uncle Mike would not be thrilled)

Mawwage is what bwings us together today

2011-08-28T14:55:00.014-06:00

So I am teaching the Mia Maids today and I am about to say a word and I hesitate. You see, there is a member of the bishopric in my class sitting in. I dread that since I am not a great teacher but I deal w/it. I know him fairly well so that makes it better and worse. Anyway, back to my point. I am about to say BUTTHEAD speaking of Alma and his little friends being uh uh lets say rebellious(not my kind of word) and then I think maybe that is not an okay word for lessons. I say it anyway since my vocabulary bank is empty besides that. So I get home and cannot help thinking that I may not be the best example as far as kind words are concerned(other ways too but I'm just addressing one at a time).
I have gotten laughs from my girls on several occasions so I just keep hoping my words are just weird and maybe old school and they aren't laughing because their leader uses inappropriate words in her lessons. The other ones I keep thinking are dirtbags, jerks, and psychopaths. I think of another db word that my adviser likes but the refrains from using it. I for some reason struggle in the refrain.
I also realized I called Neve a "beast from Hell" as I walked down the hall leaving church. In this particular scenario is Hell a place and therefore not a swear word or is it a swear word along w/a place? I'm unsure so I will keep it up until reprimanded I suppose.
So people often say those three words aren't really swear words (we all know the 3) but I disagree. I think the first one is a swear word and is okay to use after stubbing ones toe, or crashing into the car in front of you but the other two are not. I spell the one like the non swear word (in my head as I am saying it) and the other really is a place, right? I'm good at justification. One of my talents. I wonder if there will be a lesson on that? I will rock it!

I have had a week of frustrations this first week back at school
1. My kids always get some sort of stomach bug and I cannot blame it on school lunch since I packed their lunch this week
2. Kids are sooo mean to each other. Logan asked me if he should just punch a kid because the kid was telling him he couldn't play basketball unless he cut his hair. I told him that was a good idea but quickly retracted so he thought I was kidding (I was not) and told him just to tell the kid off instead, without swear words. Even though I was tempted to go the next day and give the kids some choice words and then punch his lights out. Stupid kid is just jealous that Logan is better at basketball. Dave reminded me that it is normal behavior from kids to do this but I was not a mean kid so I don't agree. He was!
3. How can I start my affair w/b.o.b. when my Kindergarten child has to wait a week to start?
4. Eating large quantities of Fiber Plus bars make your guts hurt. Why were they on sale?
Sam got his first hair cut, not from me w/the clippers (he really wanted the corn dog in the pic)
Now he looks like an old kid but still in a small body
Logan got his cut too which I am pretty sure has something to do w/that stupid kid who I want to punch. I liked his hair so much but I let it be his choice. He has some great farmer tan but all over his face and neck, its funny!
Sam on the way home from church: In a sing song kinda rapperish voice"Ladies in bikinis, driving lamborghinis" "hey mom that rhymes" yes sam, yes it does! "Mom, I was really looking forward to going to Wendys" "Mom, Neve literally did not want to do that" Driving past the field where his little soccer team is so I can turn around and park "hey mom, they are over there cause I saw some of the guys" (yes he aged like 10 yrs in 10 seconds.....guys?, they are 5 and 6)
Dave is helping Ella w/homework and says "you are going to drive me to drink" so Sam says "what does that mean dad?" I laughed at the thought of him explaining that to Sam
really long video but i never get tired of this kid (this is the whole song for those who already had the pleasure of some of this via text)
Logan asked me what "libido" is the other day which comes from this song. Dave looked at me like "this is all yours". Logan got embarrassed about my explanation and said he wished he didn't ask.

I have been touched by your kids... and I'm pretty sure that I've touched them.

2011-08-22T08:15:00.004-06:00

First Day for the older 2
Logan (5th grade) aka Shag-a-liciousElla (3rd Grade)

Sam had his Kindergarten assessment and if you ask him how it was he will say "I passed"
He is already a smart little devil and Math is his strong suite just like the others
He starts next week so my dates w/Bob don't start until then
That's okay, I'm a little rough in the lungs anyway

I absolutely hate when shows have someone on the pot, it grosses me out
just a side note BUT
Is it possible to be this cute while doing your business?

I did just say look cute and not to be mistaken for be nice, because that she is not!

Neve: I don't like Mary Popper, its too scary (Harry potter---I wont let anyone correct her)
Neve: "Sam has a wiener and I have a pee pee" Sam: "Neve we don't say that, it's called a Ca-rotch"! I am not sure who told him it is a crotch strap on the life jacket but he is using the word to its full potential!

In the slickest gig you'll ever see

2011-08-21T16:05:00.010-06:00

Bear Lake 2011 (Part I)

So we barely arrive at the condos and Logan and Dallin are playing Brians racing game. My dad just keeps telling them how to do things and being a back seat driver so to speak. So we tell him to try it. I was surprised that he did. It was sweet justice to Logan when my dad was disqualified too. He then claimed the steering wheel didn't work right and that race cars are nothing like that to drive. I have to believe him since I have never driven one and he has. We had a great time mocking him after he gave the boys such a hard time.
While Lisa & I were out running I noticed some bikes for rent. You see my pace gives me time to read menu's, read people's mail, and notice small chips in the concrete as I go. So on the way back we checked it out and decided our family's plan for the day since the weather didn't look good for boating. We went back and informed the Dads. They were not thrilled but, We were.
I let Lisa borrow my jacket to continue the confusion tradition so it looks as if my own arm is taking a photo inside the photo I am actually taking. Lisa forgot Bear Lake is cold sometimes and that you can water ski there and snow ski in the winter (;

Norma is always photogenic. I have the opposite affliction
Logan is the age where you want to make crazy faces in all photos

This is the beginning of Brians decline. I told Lisa to drive the Surrey while I was taking pics and she kept driving us off the road and was really being retarded. That was, until I realized her steering wheel was just for looks and it actually controlled nothing.
Now who's the retard w/the camera?

Brian blames the dead weight in the back but Lisa and I switched
and took Adam and still did okay. Poor Brian does not like Fringe on top.

Santa-Ash
hot tub bubbles make me feel like throwing up

I tried to boil her to see if it would help w/the 'tude but I feel it made her worse

This is pretty much my best side and that ain't sayin' much
This was a fun game w/lots of players and makeshift seats
I don't remember the game at all but I remember it being fun

Poor Lisa who changed these guys to the "triplets". She handles 3 like a champ too
I had a nice vacation of taking pics of other people taking care of my kids
These people w/nannies really have the right idea

Ella, Brin, Gracie, Ash

Ella FINALLY trying something other than the tube. Dave bought a ski trainer which he may end up regretting since it is all anyone will do now besides the tube. I'm sure the fun will wear off but it gives the tiny kids something they can do that is safe. Oh yeah, and BrianRod Stewart being tricky

and now sexy! (the one on the left)

Dave got some surfing in among all the driving
Adam in his designated fat sack position getting sun burned

This picture of Sam and Luke I just love. Can't explain why

Future David Lee Roth (a couple more months of no hair cuts)
Luke, Tanner, Dallin, Rockstar

Sky looks great!
Then whats up w/all the wind?

We got stuck in a pretty nasty wind storm and it was scary especially since my kids and Adam and Norma were somewhere in these crazy ridiculous waves on wave runners. The boat barely handled them and Brian looked like he was on the Deadliest Catch driving in it since there was so much over spray and splash no one could even see, especially him. I did not like it AT ALL and neither did Lisa. I fared afterwords a little better than her because of my half pills that chill out the anxiety. I offer her the other half but she declines and wallows in her anxious misery (still to this day)! On a good note all of our children were safely life jacketed but I cannot say the same for the dumb adults. It is hard when you get in a situation and have more lives in your hands than you have hands. Shoulda been an octopus!----no not 8 kids but extra hands for the ones I have.

Be excellent to each other

2011-08-21T15:04:00.011-06:00

Bear Lake 2011 (part II)
Did somebody say food?

Brian had a great idea to have smores by the fire pit. He went and bought all the stuff to do it w/to find out the pits are gas powered. Booo!

They made it work and I never realized smores can be even stickier than over the fire

This picture SUMS up Neve easily 80% of the trip. The look on her face and also how it looks as if she is ripping this blanket out of someone else's hand (she was in fact doing just that)
What the picture cannot demonstrate is the octave to which she screams

Bear Lake is really beautiful but as the pictures might suggest it is chilly there a lot.

Sam wanted to add to the beauty by posing for me to take some pictures.
His idea along w/the poses

He even wanted his mean little sister in one!
she is mean to him

We had a beach day the last day there, well if you can call what is left after all the agua we got this year a beach. A sliver of terrible sand (remember we just returned from Hawaii) and tons of weeds and crap and piles of people. But, hey when there's water you'll suffer!

Heather, Logan, Ella
The kids were happy Adam and Heather brought these since they were so much fun

Dave doesn't understand why kids don't want to go on the boat when they are at the beach, it is so foreign to the man but kids love sand!!! and these guys made the best of it.
Somewhere back there is Sam town and Dallinville.
It was quite the masterpiece.

This makes me feel stressed and claustrophobic
She is still eating sand
must be like a parakeet and it helps her digestion
Gritty.........GAG!!!
Ella and Brin

Heather, Sam, and Ash

Double Adam

We went to La Beau's 2 times. We just couldn't help ourselves

and he FINALLY smiled at me (ok for the camera but I count it)The last night
We went to the go cart track that my dad and Adam had already
tested out for us the day before

Adam didn't stop at the end and hurt the guy in front of him by crashing into the back of him. I think the guy was going to get out and yell at whoever did it but then saw that Adam had Downs and thought better of it (good man).

Me, Sam

Logan or David Bowie

Ella felt safest w/my Dad

We felt no one was safe w/Adam so he went solo
He looks like Big Baby in there to me.

The guys who worked there were really nice but did remember Adam and were smart to strategically stand all around the course. He crashed me out first and then Lisa and then some other guy. I kept wondering who the psycho driver in front of me was because he kept making sudden jerky movements but when we crashed I realized the guy was Adam LOL. Logan crashed himself but blames my Dad. My Dad says it was Logans fault because he cut him off around a corner and you can't do that in racing w/out the space. They also had Adam come out of the track first so there was no one in front of him that would be surprised by whip lash.
Totally Awesome Trip (even if I sound like Bill and Ted)!!!
THE END!!!

And burn your initials in my shoulder

2011-08-18T16:36:00.005-06:00

Lisa told me to take it easy by spending the day blogging
I didn't listen to her and now the headache is rearing its ugly head again
I thought maybe if I hurry and come do a post it might subside. I'm superstitious that way (;

I knew yesterday i had reached a new level of insanity when I caught myself walking down the hall wanting to use the F word as I said this phrase to no one but myself "I freaking hate resting". I think the walls caught my drift and felt for me. Yes that word is F but not the one I was thinking. Shame on my brain for holding onto that word only needed when I worked in a Real Estate office with those certain types.

If you do not know me, here is a large part of my personality-----If I am sleeping or laying down and it is not dark outside (minus the morning sun ha ha), I am not well and must be in some sort of pain, or possibly check my pulse because I may have died.
Angi wanted to reprimand me for thinking I was resting by "sitting" on the floor to wash walls but she just laughs at me instead.

Anyway Meet My new Man (for at least while the Dave one is away)His name is B.O.B. and I feel that I have already neglected him since he has been in my home for one whole day and has only been pushed aside and sat on by Logan and Neve. I tried my dangdest to take a photo w/out the reflections but then again I suppose that is the point of reflectors.....DUH!!! Seriously I took about 6 shots before I thought of this. I wish I had drugs to blame but I don't think antibiotics make you looney. I plan to get moving w/bob starting next week w/my inhaler in tow. Luckily I bought the extra basket thingy for the top to hold all my meds and old lady devices.
(oh yeah and if you notice I painted my window and drank a bunch of coffee for the filters so I could make a wreath to hang from it.....I think I was going to get back on what I did w/that window and I just remembered that. I'm still in the process of redoing this rooms decor)
Dave is now needing a PT because all his running has jacked up his knee
We will be fine teammates in this Ragnar in 9 Weeks!!! Who picked us anyway?

Soccer starts tonight headache or not and now I have Sam playing too so I have to have 2 boys in 2 different places at the same time. Dave cannot be helpful since he has started working a lot again so wish me luck. I love this time of year! But Why? Glutton for punishment I suppose.
The weather redeems the chaos!
I will get back to Bear Lake at some point I hope
I'm trying to just pretend I'm still there (but not on the boat in wind)

Today is tomorrow. It happened

2011-08-16T10:27:00.005-06:00

Bear Lake 2011
Just when I was about to blog this I came down w/a weird headache/fever/body ache/need to lay down in the middle of the grocery store ache. I also was getting mad at Logan during Sacrament meeting for laying on the bench but mostly because it seemed unfair. Then I just went home. Longest Sacrament meeting of my LIFE!!!
It be pneumonia
AGAIN!!!
Do you catch this from boating because
I feel like this is a rerun of last summer after Pineview
Yep, I've seen this before
http://daveaprilhendrickson.blogspot.com/2010/07/whats-point-of-prolonging-inevitable.html
I hate old stories so this may never get blogged unless I get really tired and weird as I sometimes do.

Sam says: "I hate these juicy flip flops" Dave: "Juicy?" Sam:"yeah every time I wear them I get this juice all over my feet" Dave (laughing) "Sam that's called sweat" Sam: "Sweat" said in a way like Dave was ridiculous for saying that feet sweat.

I was the only guy to ever take off his skate and try to stab somebody

2011-07-30T19:27:00.006-06:00

Last Saturday we took the boys and Neve to the country club for dinner and a little golf

sounds so yuppie

Its always a little risky taking her to places that screaming isn't welcome!
She did really well and Logan didn't spill anything for the first time in his life
Dave thinks Sam is a more natural golfer than Logan but I know not

Neve feels it's time for her to learn
I know that she is entirely too impatient for such a sport
and too noisy

After that we went to the REAL game
Which was awesome. I like to pay to watch teams win.
Ella was off w/Sydney at their condo so that is why she is missing

Sam was diggin' my ladies visor

he was doing a lot of dancing during the music but I am still a retard and keep forgetting you cannot turn the camera sideways while videoing

Like father like Daughter ( I like the proud smirk on his face)
she would not have made it through w/out the phone

It ended w/awesome fireworks
Wish they would let me light a few of those suckers!

A few of my favorite things
Feet, flip flops, food, and green grass
oh yeah and the side of Sams bum
The dirt between Logans toes, not so much!
Sam says: Dave took the boys to dinner and a movie and after his first taste of Training Tables fry sauce he said "wow....that really is the ultimate dipping sauce"

I thought it came from Buddhist temples and stuff like that

2011-07-21T12:39:00.006-06:00

I stopped by Wendy's to get Sam and Neve a kids meal. Sam loves their chicken sandwiches but he likes them w/mayo. On the way home he said "oh I hope it has mayo....crap, it doesn't" they are dumb and don't put mayo on the chicken sandwiches in the kids meal. I said "we will be home in a second and I can put mayo on it" he was sitting back there for a minute just staring at his sandwich and then said "well, staring at this sandwich isn't helping to make me unhungry". I always call my mom to tell her these things because she gets such a kick out of him. speaking of....

My mom came over yesterday to bring me her wedding book so we can get more planning of their 50th party underway. She was showing Ella herself as a bride & said to Sam "wasn't I pretty" and he said "kind of"! She started laughing because he it was so Sam and I was trying to reprimand him for bad manners but she was laughing too much and I had to tell him he was rude while laughing. I am not sure that lesson hit home w/him.
I have been having acupuncture for the last few weeks and the Dr.'s main goal is to clear up my liver which he says has a lot of inflammation and my stomach that has some sort of yeast. Sounds so creepy especially the yeast. So he based all this solely on the appearance of my tongue. I was a little skeptical but after a few days I noticed my tongue was starting to look really different and I could eat walnuts and coconut and pineapple w/out so much as a canker sore. WHAT???
I know eastern medicine is widely practiced and I find it very intriguing but it is really kind of WEIRD. I do like their philosophy more than western about treating the real problem rather than just the symptoms. Anywho the liver causes fertility issues as well as normal female functioning when it is not working right (according to the chinese) so I am giving this a whirl to see if Mr Miyagi can fix my myriad of issues plus it's really neat to learn about.
So the worst part about this treatment for me is probably the best part for 99% of everyone else. I have to just lay there for 25 to 30 min 2 times a week for 3 weeks. Sure I have needles in my arms, legs, head, and face but they do not hurt, the resting does. I do not like laying around. It makes me nuts. I noticed the last 3 times when he reentered the room my butt was clenched as if I were at the dentist and I think it was that way for the whole 30 minutes. So much for relaxing! I just don't know how.......except when it is normal sleeping hours.

We took the kids to the Rodeo on Monday and I had never been. Dave told me he would not go and I told him too bad because I already bought him a ticket. He is always a good sport but spent a lot of time on his phone. I thought it was neat and fairly fun. The Bull riding was enough go give Lisa and myself panic attacks but it was still exciting to watch. We worried about their poor mothers watching their sons be impaled by bull horns or any other injury they could/would receive doing this sport. Sam was ready to go after he got his churro but he suffered through and was rewarded w/cool motorcycle stunts at the end. There were some adults sitting in the middle of our row that I swear got out like 8 times. We had 8 kids w/us and didn't even have to go out half that many times. So weird! Also weird, the guy in front of me was dipping his popcorn in nacho cheese sauce and it was making me want to puke on his head, but then he would probably dip the popcorn in that! People are weird, and really fun to watch!

just another 365 night stand

2011-07-14T17:49:00.004-06:00

She was potty trained and now she is peeing her pants just to practice putting outfits together.
She puts her undies on crack-ed (as I like to call it). She never, accidentally even puts her legs through the right holes. It might seem odd but I don't change it unless they seem to hurt because I think her bum cheeks peeking out are so cute. Especially right now when her legs are so tan and her bum so white. We got ourselves another brown girl. Lucky girls!
This was empty this morning, oh wait.......
it is still morning and she has worn all this
and peed in all this
Sam Says: "when I have a son I am going to name him mini Sam and when he has a son he will name him super mini Sam" Logan says "when I have a son I will name him Alex" Me: "why alex?" Logan: "because I like that name" Sam: "Alex sounds kinda girlish"

I don't know how a Sam could get more "super" or more "mini" than the original but I guess time will tell

Sam likes to point out bums and boobs a lot lately, well, maybe he always has. He also loves the word chubby and uses it to describe both of these body parts. While some might take offense to this he doesn't see chubby as a bad word, it is used by him as by others when referring to a chubby baby. Logan on the other hand had just recently started to get older and has become bothered by nakedness so Sam constantly pointing things out and laughing makes Logan laugh but yet makes him feel weird and embarrassed too. I had the kids watch "The gods must be crazy" a while back and while Ella giggled about the naked boobs and bums I think Logan wanted to disappear.

Sam decided to tell an older friend today that he used to drink milk from his moms boobs and this not to be named older friend got all embarrassed and denied it. I couldn't stop laughing but luckily neither one knew exactly why I was laughing. One thought it was because of the preposterous allegations Sam was making against him and Sam thought it was because the older kid didn't know about breast feeding. I left it at that!
I told this kids mother that some parents might end up awfully thrilled that my 5 year old is reminding them of what they once did in the boobies department.

Logan and Sam told Neve and Tanner to kiss, so they did & then told Neve and Luke to kiss, so they did. Oh man............this girl is gonna have some decisions to make!!! Lisa told Tanner to stop kissing and he said in a very teenage like way, "Why?"
I have my own theory that they were kissing her just to shut her big mouth up!!!
2 and 3 year olds, whats not to love?

Yes, because the water was cold... and the chewing warms me up

2011-07-05T10:14:00.009-06:00

We decided to start the holiday a little early w/a repeat of last years BBQ at Matt and Angi's
We of course had to play the towel/water balloon game and we had quite a bit of fun before the game w/the filling of the balloons. I have a special way of playing this game and instead of moving my feet I like to stretch to try to reach the water balloon regardless of where it is launched to. Dave has a special way of not liking to be my partner while I do this.

Sam, ThippO, Jamin, Logan

Atti, Ella, Beast from the East

I had to include a photo of this RETARD that couldn't drop off nor pick up his tent trailer in a normal manner. Get outta the way!!!

Neve always likes Uncle Mike and took a special liking to him during all the excitement.
She is leery of fireworks while her mother is not. Mike takes good care of kids especially during potentially dangerous activities. I don't think he trusts my "who's watching these kids" skills! but I trust his (maybe unfortunately for him)

I liked this pic of Matt and Dave because Matt is the same age as me so that means these two have been friends for 35 years. Brings a little tear to my eye!

Keri was not posing and worried this would be a jacked up photo but I think it is pretty good and she is really good at buying and organizing fireworks. It was the perfect little show. Matt claimed it was the best day of his life. Keri reminded him of his wife and 3 kids but he would not take back the statement.

Remember how the sewer covers are so awesome to drop fireworks down? I do! I hope life never gets so far advanced that kids are deprived of this pleasure, dirty legs and all!!!

We took a one day break and then on to the actual holiday
Dave, Norma, Keri and Myself ran in the Magna 5K
(yeah we didn't know there was such a thing either & most people still don't know)
Dave took third and I was the first female finisher but only because I let Keri take a wrong turn so I could beat her. Then we ran home and I drank too much water so then I felt sick the rest of the day. Dumb me but I am sure I will do the same thing next time too
The Magna parade
this is how I felt about it this time around

So after that torture we came back to my house (as per usual) and ate and lazed about all day while the kids swam and played games. Then Keri and I went to buy more fireworks.
Did I mention she has a knack for this. We appreciated the worker letting us know which ones sucked but I am pretty sure he knew we would spend a ton of money either way.
I may be a little like my dad in my willingness to blow money on fireworks and Keri, well she is just Keri.

buff, Sydney, Daph, Faybee, Ella, Faye, Chloe

Elijah, Keenan, Quinn, Logan
There were more kids here but I have no idea where they were and i was so freaking tired I didn't even know where I was (;

Josh and Nick helped me light and whose father Matt spent a large sum of money on fireworks for us to enjoy also.

Neve today, who paid dearly for the celebrations and ended up w/Strep
I may have noticed sooner that she was sick except she is randomly wretched so it is hard to tell if it is just her evil side or her not feeling well

Samisms
We are all over here and have just finished the fireworks and we hear bloody murder screams from over by the fence in my backyard. I think it is Neve and someone else and they sound injured. I run to let them out of the gate that they are pounding on and I open it to terrified Samuel and Finlay. I ask them what happened and Sam says in a very terrified crying voice that they thought they saw something in the pool. I tried not to laugh and then Finlay said "I am just very scared of the dark". I think Finlay got scared and then scared the crap out of Sam. I have never heard him scream like that!
I am listening to the radio and he says "Mom what band is this?"
"mom I think I know why you hate all the halos" i say "why?" and he says "cause your not addicted to them yet"
"Mom do you know that a company called bungee made modern warfare 1 2 and 3?"
"Mom do you wanna do somethin today, like play a game w/me or do somethin w/me or like go to the store and get a new doorknob?" (we have a broken door knob)

Sitting around waiting for a promotion

2011-07-03T22:59:00.003-06:00

So I got on the trampoline and jumped really "super" high and when I landed I felt a very weird sensation.

My water broke?

Wait I'm not pregnant

I think I peed~

What?

So I jumped again and sure enough

Pee-ing!

Ahhhhhhhh!

The doctor told me to make sure to keep doing "holding it" exercises if i was going to continue to run so much. I should have listened. He said something like 70% of women who run leak urine while running. Crap, I sure hope jumping on the tramp peeing comes well before running peeing does.

Yeah yeah TMI! Get over it. If you cannot openly talk about piddling your pants you need to get out more. I told Neve I was going to put a diaper on and she believed me.

I am trying to go to sleep but there is way too much commotion going on outside and I am stressed the commotion is going to burn down my house!

Sam says: "Mom I am like the lotioner expert." "Neve is from the land of Scream" The words in Dustland Fairytale talk about the devil wrapping up his hands and Sam changed it to Nevel wrapping up her hands because he already realizes she is similar to the devil 90% of the day

and it brings out the thug in me

2011-06-28T21:16:00.003-06:00

Definition of Summer when you are two:

totally dressed yourself & taking a nap halfway on halfway
off the office chair watching the Backyardigans

The boat finally made its debut this year and it is almost July
We took it to Utah Lake to give it a test drive
and the day couldn't have been more perfect
which is opposite of our last trip w/the boat to Lake Powell
where everything went awry especially that spider

Sam, Luke, Ash, Ella, Neve, Brin

Logan doing the sprinkler or shopping cart on the back of the tube
He moves just like the white boy that he is

and this poor lady can never catch a break
never a bare lap for her
Neve quickly and happily took over Luke's spot

Dave pulled out the rusty old wake board & I have never seen him ride it so well
Unloading some unneeded cargo on board him must be the key
We had a 5K the next day that I hadn't signed us up for yet
I was waiting to see if he would jack up his back doing this sport before I spent the $
Lucky for him he stayed injury free and ran his 2nd 5K the next morning
Brian and Dave surfed but those are videos and take too long to upload so I may or may not share them. Depends on my patience level.
Lisa and I tried to wake board unsuccessfully
I'm like dead weight back there so I knee boarded instead
but plan to try the surf board next time in non shark infested waters

Dave has been trying and trying to get her to do the knee board and I suppose this is her year to conquer fears because she asked to do it and got up her first try
She is quickly turning a nice shade of brown (she lucked out w/skin)
We had no flying babies this year and I was happy about that
I felt no stress or anxiety for the first time in a long time while out on the water w/all those kids to save in a potential emergency but poor Lisa gained all of my anxieties I am afraid
I will share the pills
I realized on this trip out that our snorkeling tour helped cure me of my fear of "what lies beneath" and I really enjoyed being out in the water even w/little girls screaming and hanging all over me, luckily I don't have fears of drowning or fear of 8 yr olds

Neve speak: Swimmin soup (suit).
Just bought tickets for myself and Jamie to Erasure-----yipeeeeee
Dave and I each took 4th place in our age group in the 5K even though he beat me by like 10 minutes. I shaved a lot of time off since last year but I still run at a turtles pace. I'm good w/that. I like turtles!

Looked out the window and what did I see?

2011-06-23T18:20:00.003-06:00

Two butt cheeks smiling at me.
She likes to lick water and that's all I can say about that

Who ever said you eat like a bird to light eaters?
Birds are freakin' pigs in feathers!
I love watching birds but the cute bird feeder I bought to spruce up my yard and back window viewing brings out the worst in the suckers. Must be like driving for people.
I feel like I might go broke from buying bird seed but at the same time am contemplating getting a few more feeders to attract them to my yard. They are too cute and it gives my cat a reason to get off her lazy bum. I will be mad at her if she catches one though. Mice are free game or a seagull. (dont tell the pioneers I said that)

I was driving a bunch of youth on a temple trip last week when some jack@#$% cuts right in front of me and the driver behind me came close to hitting me so I said in a very loud angry voice "holding back lots of swear words right now"! Does that still count as swearing? well, it shouldn't because I didn't feel better. Now I need to work on that w/my own kids and then I know soon Sam will start saying that. Either way I'm screwed!
Summer came on full force and I got my first Sun stroke yesterday at the park previously known as Raging waters! One of the rites of summer for me along w/a couple bad cases of fever blisters. I got a new drug that is supposed to help w/the outbreak but we will see. I won't complain too much since this virus took Nellies sight in one eye and I just get occasional lumpy lips w/pus and bleeding (painted pictures are always more effective)

Don't worry Wilson, I'll do all the paddling. You just hang on.

2011-06-14T21:58:00.005-06:00

These be the feet of 3 of my kids

I have 2 girls and 2 boys
but.......

One is a SAM and there ain't no one like him
& he is completely comfortable in his masculinity
He still knows its for girls but still really likes it
"and purple is a boy color now too mom, you even said it the other day"
Is it fair that the boys toes look the best painted w/his awesome skin,
kinda like how the boys get the long lashes too. Criminal!

Neve was the royal beast during Sacrament meeting this last week because I was a single parent w/four kids and a castaway. She was not being especially bad just really really loud and when she is loud it is LOUD!!! At one point I took her out to go to the bathroom or get a drink and as we are walking back in across the back of the chapel she says (really loudly) Just-in beeeeber, Just-in Beeeber, Just-in beeeeber. I can only blame Angi for introducing her to the teenage heart throb. At one point on the bench she was singing "Jimma Freddette, nuthin but net" so I know she is also sponging up everything the boys are saying. I told Dave on the phone that day "just so you know if you ever die, I am quitting church".
So, needless to say I am very happy to have Dave back,
even though I think I have only caught a glimpse of him twice since.
At 8 pm tonight the kids had not eaten dinner yet and he had just gotten home from work, they were all surrounding him at the stove begging for various types of food. They looked like little beggars and there I stood "all alone" on the other side of the kitchen just reveling in the scene. He looked at my with "are you gonna help" in his eyes and I looked at him & laughed and walked out of the room. SUCKA!!! It finally clicked in their heads that he is home.
Sweet Justice!
(I did come back and make them dinner though, since they haven't eaten anything since he left.....no one told me I had to feed them)

Sam Says
"Chipper isn't a real man"
I say "why"?
"Cause he bites his Creamy"
This coming from the boy w/purple sparkle toes!

Another urchin snaps and left dead on his own

2011-06-05T21:42:00.003-06:00

Thursday (no idea why I know this day of the week and not the others)
This was day 8 or 9 but who's keeping track?
maybe because this was my favorite day of the trip
Even though I looked like this

but it was after a long fun filled day on a snorkel trip w/ www.mauioceanriders.com
where we circumnavigated Lana'iSnorkels are very flattering
I really don't even know how to describe it. It was amazing and I think I got over some of my fears of underwater creatures. I touched an octopus that the guide caught and resisted the urge to scream when it suctioned onto me. These people are great at what they do. It was the perfect combination of sight seeing and snorkeling all in one. We were gone all day and luckily on this trip there were no annoying people. Daves Y hat started up some conversations w/a family and then this last picture is one of them that looked eerily like Mehmot Okur (I still need to remember to tell my kids I was lying about Memo snorkeling w/us). I was going to photo shop the picture but never did so its a dead giveaway unless it is zoomed and shown on my phone.

We lucked out and ended up boating right through a giant group of spinner dolphins that put on quite the show for us. It was really cool to see them in the wild and not at Sea world. Our guide kept turning the boat around so we could see them for a long time. He reminded me a lot of our friend Chad (funny enough that was also his name). The woman guide reminded me of Jillian Michaels, the quiet and nice version, so Okay mostly just her looks.

That same night we had booked a Luau at www.feastatlele.com and it was really fun and entertaining. The food was also entertaining because I was trying a bunch of sea crap for the first time. Just to make sure, you know, that I still hated it. Yep, I do!!!

The unlimited drinks were a bonus although they made a killing on us since our drinks were sans alcohol which is where the cost is. I am not sure who drove all these people home but it surely needed to not be them. We should have charged for rides. We could have recouped our $.

They did have some real meat on the menu which was good & the desserts were great too but my only regret was doing this on the same day as the snorkel all day in the sun trip.
We were wiped out
I guess we just seemed like quiet drunks!

I was going to take a picture of all the courses but forgot after the first course.
Short term memory is going now too.

The show was fun and I enjoyed it although I almost stood up and punched a guy cat calling the girls w/the coconut bras because he was old enough to be their grandpa and it made me so ornery and disgusted. I guess he didn't realize there wasn't a pole center stage. SICKO!!!

These were my favorite two parts of the show.
Fire dance and crazy, I might kill you and eat you dance.
(i'm not sure that is the proper name for the dance)

It really was a perfect end to the vacation!!! even though there was still one more day. I may get to that sometime but also might not.
I didn't mention yet that I probably ate about 10 pounds of coconut candy while I was there which didn't help me win any prizes at the completion of my weight loss challenge.
Ahhhh it was worth every sugar laden calorie!!!
Also if I lived in Hawaii I might think about running a marathon. It was so easy to breath and I felt like I could run forever, the scenery helps too.
Pictures don't do justice so each person must experience this at least once for themselves
Dave was talking "next time" on day 5 in typical Dave fashion

Tried to amend my carnivorous habits

2011-06-05T21:29:00.007-06:00

Somewhere between day 6 and 8
This is how I feel about being picked up at my hotel at 1:50 a.m. (yes thats an a)

This is how I feel about not bringing any warm clothes to Hawaii

The top of the Haleakala is awfully cold come 5 a.m. (yes thats an a)
I told Dave this might be my first sunrise ever
He laughed pretty hard about that
Only, I wasn't kidding

Pretty amazing and did I mention frigid!!!
We had some yacker from the east coast in our van on the way up.
Dude, shut the hell up at 2 in the A!!!
Good thing he wasn't around me for the sunrise or I may have pushed him in.

We then biked back down on these old school granny bikes and the men wanted to kill the women who were in front riding their brakes the whole way down. I wasn't quite that wimpy but I still wouldn't have gone nuts, it was pretty steep at times & I wasn't really comfortable on granny the bike w/the squishy brakes & bouncy seat

I have been awake for sunrises before but it was my first one to actually watch. Dave still thought that was funny! We stopped at a restaurant on our way home to eat breakfast & low and behold Mr. East Coast/talk a mile a minute was at the table right behind us. Dave made a great joke and I couldn't stop laughing (not appropriate for blog publishing) and then he was shusshing me even though he was the one who said it. It was just in mockery of annoying chatterbox but out of character for Dave so I KNEW he must be really annoying!!!
Dave was surprisingly more grumpy about the a.m. activity than I was. Looks like I might be more of a morning person than him but that's not saying much.
Oh yeah and this gay pose that the guys thought was so ingenious.
The guy running this whole shebang couldn't shut his yap the whole morning either. Had it not been so impressive how he just jumped from one subject to the next w/out so much as an "uh huh" from anyone else I would have grabbed him from behind and choked the life out of him. Did I mention I was more of a morning person than Dave?

This is the view from Cheeseburger in Paradise that I thought was nice. They had live music and the guy was really good and doing good music. I could have stayed their all evening, but it might have had something to do w/my drunken tired stupor. When someone does Eagles, Jimmy Buffet, Simon and Garfunkel and such well it is right in my relaxation zone!!! Plus, the burgers were awesome and my pineapple drink.

The next Day Dave took a surf lesson
Dave always masters things really easily so we figured he would have this in the bag. He was surprised at how hard it was and said it's much different than surfing behind the boat. Toward the end he tweaked his back and walked like an 80 year old the rest of the trip.I found God down on Front street that day
or at least one of his surf bum prophets
I sometimes wonder if the way I looked at him was the way people looked at good ol' Joseph Smith and it made me feel sad for the poor boy and then man.
I enjoyed listening to him for a while by the Banyan tree because so much he had to say was true, just w/a little twist here and there that made me smile.
Shoot I forgot to write down the day that Jesus is coming. This guy knew!
I really should have blogged sooner - I am really relying on these pics now for memory jog

You think the last words to The Star Spangled Banner are "Gentlemen, start your engines."

2011-06-05T09:39:00.005-06:00

It has been quite a day, especially going solo
Logan got into Jackson/Jimmer basketball camp last minute and I surprised him. Matt took him the first night because I think he was more excited than the boys. I appreciated the help because I have 3 more kids to tote around so I prefer to not go anywhere.
Saturday morning Logan had a BBall tournament
they lost by 2 to a team w/very poor sportsmanship and w/a really terrible referee that pretty much lost the game for them. It was harder on him because both sets of grandparents and Keri had come to watch him win. He was very sad and mad but then glad.
Because then we ran home to take Sam to his last soccer game & luckily my parents & Mike and Keri were there because I had to leave early to get Logan to the 2nd half of the Jimmer camp (hence the glad)

They really were genuinely nice guys and made a point to talk to each kid separately. Logan took 2nd place in the 2 point shoot out. I was nervous & really wanted him to win because he took 2nd in the Westminster camp last year too. I'm still proud, but I wanted him to win. He had to beat a lot of kids to get that far. It would have been a nice thing too because of his loss this morning. Welcome to life though. When we got home my kids pretended it was summer again and I let them
Then just because I am a glutton for punishment, I took them to the races that night.
Alone!!!
Scary (people like this go there)
that is a wig and it is funny
There are a lot of rednecks and a lot of WT but that is what makes it even more fun

This is pretty much how Ella felt about the noise
I always forget earplugs (sorry kids)

Sam was totally all about the Jet cars. Too bad that 2 of the 4 were duds!
Nellie & Eric were going to go to the Blaze but came here instead and our kids were non stop getting up getting up getting up and I said to her, you know if we were somewhere that they "had" to stand they would be complaining about standing all that time yet here they wont sit still. Sometimes you take your kids places and want to kill them the whole time and wonder why you bothered! Oh the woes of parenting and in the end they always say they had fun but they don't know why their mom was so grumpy!!!
We got home late and I had yet to plan my YW lesson so I put it off for a few more hours and then dug in and got it done. I forget the time change in China because Dad called bright and early to say goodnight to the kids and to wake me and remind me why you don't procrastinate.

Everyones a comedian around here Logan is screwing around while he is eating and spills his hot chocolate on my YW manual and I say "damnit Logan" and Sam says "damnit Logan" and I say "Sam don't say damnit" laughing. I said "Sam don't copy me when I am yelling at Logan". So, Sam in a giggly voice says "you say damn it, I say damn it" giggle giggle giggle. Logan ends us all by saying "don't make jokes about this on the sabbath" and grins as if he is the most clever of all !

Nothin to show but this brand new tattoo

2011-05-31T10:19:00.013-06:00

Days 3-5 although there is no account of day 4 here
because I have no clue what went on that day.
I will have to check w/my memory (Dave)
Pearl Harbor

I cannot muster anything much to say when I look at these photos. I never expected to feel so overwhelmingly emotional! I mean everyone knows I'm a crier but I didn't expect the ones I would feel here. It all was so heartbreaking. I really struggled in the museums where they had things displayed that these people were wearing on this day. I saw the pictures of the little kids going to school carrying their books in one hand and their gas masks in the other.It felt much like a funeral as I suppose it should. I know it is probably some military thing but I really really hate the thought of a watery tomb. I want someone to go down and get them all out. I kept thinking of all the parents of these "boys" killed and then I had to find a happy place in my head really quickly before I started to bawl. Everyone else in the place seemed very somber but stoic and I kept thinking, "am I the only disaster in this place"?
I think I learned more about this history here than I ever have
because I am such a visual learner.
If only high school History could be so touching and impacting,
I may have gone into History.................naaah!
We flew to Maui right after going here
and I was drained (emotionally)
Jet lag was wearing off though....ha ha

Westin in Maui

It was very nice and very beautiful there
Minus the fact that people here are completely covered in tattoos,
it became like where is Waldo to find someone w/none or even just oneIt was literally right on the beach
not that Oceanside right on the beach kind (a mile away)

A lot of people spend their days in Hawaii in lounge chairs by pools drinking the days away & leathering up their skin. I guess now days it is in to look old really fast by tanning all day! I do not sit and laze away well like that at all. Dave and I both agreed that you only lay in the sun long enough to get dried off and then you move along.

Dave spent a bit of time working as he always has to while we are on vacation
but hey its what pays for the vacation so who can complain?

Road to Hana

The road to Hana is about the "road" to Hana and not actually about Hana
It is a 3 hour drive (I think) to get there on the windiest road you have ever seen.
I told Dave it was like 3 hours on the wild mouse except
our car could go off the edgeof the much of the time one lane road.

You do not, I repeat do NOT do this drive if you get car sick
Luckily we don't!

You literally just hoped and prayed no one was coming around the corner the other direction. The locals all load up in the backs of trucks and stuff (yeah no seat belts---gasp) and come around this like a bat outta hell.
Seriously freaked me out a few times but not enough to stop going.

This tree was one of my favorite sites but I kind like plants & flowers

Or maybe this was one of my favorites?Hmmm this kind of stuff is pretty cool too unless of course it is
wrapping around your leg, then that would not be so cool
Also not cool that I think I have a pin head....or is it just the photo?
Either way my head looks too small for my body........blech, I hate pictures of myself!After the long switchback road we got to Haleakala National Park
and the 7 sacred pools that we had done this drive to be able to swim in
(and see naked people that shouldn't be comfortable naked, for kicks and giggles),The pools were flooded and therefore swimming was not allowed unless of course you had a crashing over waterfalls into the rocky sea below death wish
Bummer, but we decided on a hike insteadThis is mostly not sweat but humidity
Okay and maybe some sweat
Some people stopped and went back to their car after seeing this waterfall
Dumb choice!Hike a little longer and go through all this bamboo and
hike through some streams and it is all worth the trouble
It was like a Misty paradise
full of dumb girls who hiked in bikinis and flip flops and were taking non stop pics of themselves yelling out "OC, OC" doing the facebook picture upside down peace sign gestures and such
Were they annoying me?
Oh no, not at all
I threw them my best "your freaking idiots" eyes and moved along The road back was not so fun and we just wanted it to end
funny thing too, 3 hours to get there means 3 hours back
I hadn't thought of that
It was worth it though, even if we saw no laughable nudes
We did however see some girls from the OC. Did I mention that?

Lucky thing in Hawaii, most nights end somewhat like this.
So, if you miss it one day you just have to wait until tomorrow.
Good News: Jet lag was gone completely!

Sam says:

I said "hey Sam I'm really sorry that we made you think we were leaving you home from church to teach you a lesson, that wasn't a great idea by me" and he said "awww it was nothin'". Guess it didn't leave too much of a scar, but sadly I bet I will be fighting him next week to get dressed for church ),

Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit sniffing glue

2011-05-30T15:47:00.005-06:00

Hawaii Days 1 & 2

Oahu (North Shore)

We stayed at Turtle Beach Resort and this was the view from our window
We arrived late the first night so didn't do much except go to bed since it was 4 hrs later at home and seemed like the right thing to do.

Everything pretty much that I blog from these first few days is almost absent from my memory. I had the worst time w/Jet lag. Dave kept telling me to quit yawning. I was still trying to keep a handle on these crazy migraines too w/out getting addicted to the medicine that helps w/them. Needless to say I was kind of a sleepy disaster. I tell people it is not good for me to mess w/my sleep. I get all jacked up. Dave quickly realized I wasn't kidding about that.
Good thing for pictures and Daves amazing memory or I would have to say that I know I had a great time but I don't quite remember why. On day 2 we went to the temple and low and behold the guy in the visitor center is Mark Eubank and he and I have a long discussion about the weather (shocking I know).

Then we took a ride by BYU Hawaii of course.
The trip may have been incomplete otherwise!
Finally what I had been wanting since I saw it on food network a few years ago.
I was kind of being a Brian about a few food things there that I wanted to try

A Shave ice w/beans and ice cream. So awesome!
but shockingly Dave and I both thought the pineapple flavored syrup sucked.
The beans were good w/the ice cream too
Seems weird but true
http://www.matsumotoshaveice.com/
It still kind of bugs me that they call it shave ice
I feel like it needs a d but Hawaii doesn't
We went to Waimea Valley on a Nature hike. Above is Waimea Falls
Dave humored me here because he knows I like plants and flowers

How can you not?
Then we spent the majority of that day kind of exploring around the North Shore
We watched kite surfers and saw para gliders and an actual glider plane
A lone dog on the beach decided to be my friend and kept stepping on my feet if I would stop petting him. I think he was a beach bum.

Speaking of animals and bums, there were some hobo cats in the parking lot at the resort too that would just lay in the middle of the road and expect the cars to go around them.
I guess they always get their way since they are not flat yet.

Lastly we ate at this little dive right next to a gas station, Kahuku grill and the food was awesome. Dave took a pic on his phone of me and where I was seated because it looked like Logan had eaten there. I was shaky and couldn't seem to keep my hamburger together or keep the fry sauce upright, or not set my drink in the fry sauce I spilled.
I am not the kind of person who takes tons of pictures because I like to actually experience the sights while I am there an not later when I look at my pictures. I found on this trip that pictures didn't do anything justice anyway.
After we got back I think we went and watched surfers and the sun set and saw a few turtles swimming around, we may or may not have swam in the pool (I think we did) because I think I remember it being a salt water pool. I have forgotten some things but for some odd reason some of the food stands perfectly in my brain. Funny, I am not normally that way.

Sam says: The night after we got home I was talking to him in his room and he told me something and then said "wouldn't you agree mom"? Wouldn't I agree? yes where does he come from?
Today he and Logan and Dave were going to go see Pirates so he came down while I was on the elliptical and said "hey mom, we are gonna leave to the movie in a bit so I thought I better come down and get a kiss". Glad he still loves me even after our backfire.

I blew out my flip-flop Stepped on a pop-top

2011-05-29T14:50:00.006-06:00

What did kids do before Netflix?

The kids pulled a fast one on Grandma H and told her that Neve falls asleep watching Netflix, little did grandma realize one hour later that Neve knows how to keep pushing next episode

I might be worried it has caused this winky eye except that she has been doing this since birth

I found something I love and if you look at the ingredients it would b a no brainer on why the package is empty quickly after it is opened
3 of my food groups

So as most are aware, I am a flip flop wearing girl, once a thong girl but times have changed and now thongs cause wedgies (once melvins)!

My feet were quite at home while in Hawaii. Which of course was reason for my previous anxious feeling. Not the trip, just leaving someone else to do all the dirty work w/the 4 rugrats while I was gone. No one wears shoes there and quite often you see people shopping barefoot. While I do enjoy barefoot to the mailbox and such I find it gross shopping.

Flip flops are not considered appropriate footwear in some places (much to my chagrin) but I still try to get away w/them whenever I can. But I have found a new and possibly more comfortable to the space between my big and fourth toe sandal. I only bought this one pair to see how they wear but they pretty much have every style and color that I will most likely start to collect. Yipeee!

Dave already started his collection.
I tried to get him to buy canvas shoes when they first started coming back in a few years ago & he laughed at me and said he didn't want to look like Jimmy Buffet.
Well since he is already nicknamed Jimmy to some he may as well start playing the part.

So if your in the market for a not cheap-o pair of sandals, these b the 1's

I will one day get to bloggin' about Hawaii but I still feel a bit hung over and off kilter and shockingly have a headache so this is just gonna have to b good for today.

I will end w/a great parenting story because, I mean to be honest, I am pretty much the ideal.
So my little Sam, while being very pleasant and funny most times, is by far my most stubborn child. This morning he was pulling his not wanting to get ready for church crap so I decided it was time to teach him the lesson we taught Logan when he was 3. We left him home alone! But really I was just dropping them all off and coming back to deal w/his crap. This plan totally backfired! I came right back home and the garage door was open & I couldn't find him anywhere. I was waffling between anger & panic because I didn't know if he went somewhere or if he was hiding from me. I started backing out to see if he had run somewhere and a truck I didn't recognize started to pull over in front of my house w/Sams little head between two people on the seat. He opened the door and said Sam told him that his parents went to church and left him home alone. He had put a Dallas cowboys sweatshirt on Sam since he was only in his underwear & Sam showed him how to get back to our house. Sam was clear down past the kids school running to find the church in only his underwear & crying in the rain. That is pretty far away for a tiny little guy like him and I am so glad this guy was nice and thoughtful enough to stop and pick him up. I am sure he thinks and thought he was a 3 yr old by his size. I am also very glad he was not one of those small % of creepy people in the world. Thank Heaven for people who take the time to care!!!
I never thought he would have even left the house. I think the 1K he did a few weeks ago made him realize he could run far. I blame the Red Cross for all this because there is no way this could have been a bad idea by me. Never!!!!
So as I have been thinking about this ALL DAY because it stresses me to think he was all alone somewhere, I have been thinking about all the judgements we make of people "these days" w/parenting choices. So many things that our parents did are considered crimes now like leaving your kid in the car at the gas station (where I think they are perfectly safe in cool weather). Someone asked me the other day if we spank our kids or just talk to them about their behavior. It is almost like you don't dare answer if you are a spanker for fear of getting turned in. I am not quick to spank since I think there are better alternatives to alter their behavior (taught to us by having a toddler named Logan) but I am not opposed to it in certain situations either. Hillari reminded me of when My mom used to chase us down the hall w/a wooden spoon because her mom did that too. We used to laugh and inevitably so would she out of frustration. I don't think belts are acceptable though so if you do that don't tell me about it. Discipline shouldn't leave handprints...pinch prints maybe, but only during Sacrament meeting ha ha.

It is hard to always know what to do as a parent and sometimes your decision is total crap but it seemed fine at the time. My heart aches and emotions run high and I don't pass blame when I hear stories like the one last night w/the 2 yr old in drowning in the creek but I do know sometimes I do judge even when I don't know details or facts and I need to not do that anymore, especially since I returned home to a large medical bill from a fire truck ride and MRI's. I know there wasn't much I did wrong w/that scenario besides just being a little more careful but people could judge me for letting Neve exercise her independence.

something wrong w/me inherently

2011-05-25T01:14:00.002-06:00

One thing that has become very obvious to me in the last week that I have been very wrong about is
"A person doesn't necessarily need a nice bod to wear a bikini"
Dave blames the swimsuit manufacturer for making bikinis in those sizes.
I blame the ladies for not having a good mirror, lighting, spouse, friends, and eyeballs.
Your welcome for not adding photos!!!
actually my little cable wont work to put them on the computer....lucky you!!!
Sometimes i am mean and evil w/a camera in hand but if people weren't so ridiculously ridiculous I wouldn't be evil. So its not really my fault!!!

P.S. We missed U Old man Bono!

Chow mein, pizza pie, Virginia Ham

2011-05-15T09:23:00.006-06:00

Sam had his preschool program today

and it feels a little bittersweet to me

He took his parts very seriously as you can tell in the photo (and no we did not dress him in that, his teachers did and his part said "Jimmer Rocks")
I found myself having to shake off the tears a little but it was at really odd times
It just kept hitting me that time goes by so fast and the more you want it to slow down the faster it seems to go. I don't like the idea of my little Sam going to kindergarten. He is still that mellow, beautiful little brown faced baby I brought home from the hospital. He made everyone want to have a baby, some babies have that affect on people and he was one of em'
I love all my kids and each plays such an important role in our family but I am not sure Sams role can be defined. He is such an interesting little creature and we find ourselves asking quite often "where did he come from"?
Anyway, I don't want to share him w/Kindergarten. I feel like keeping him all to myself for a few more years or at least until he is the size of a Kindergartener.....that surely buys me time.

I feel anxious tonight but cannot say why
I need to go to bed
but I would need a tranquilizer to counteract the Imitrex I just took---booooo!

I hear Neve crying from my bed yelling "I want daddy" and Sam meanders into the kitchen and says "Well, that didn't go well". I laughed and said "what"? he said he went in to tell Neve that Mom was in the kitchen and she started to cry because she didn't want Mom.

Sam is telling Ella that she can't drink her water before the prayer is said and Ella is disputing this so he asks me and I say that you can drink your water before the prayer if you are thirsty. So, Ella says "see" and Sam says back "well I don't know a lot about life and I bet mom has teached you a lot more about life than she has teached me"

If the headache would only precede the intoxication, alcoholism would be a virtue

2011-05-14T20:19:00.007-06:00

I started out this week w/a migraine and then got a break on Tue

and then had another on Wed
and then went to the Zoo w/Logans class on Thurs
(which also could count as a type of headache) Not really though. I had a great group of Boys and I hope its not against some sort of rule to put their pic on my blog w/out written consent
(I like to ask for forgiveness anyway so this will give me more opportunity to do that)

The kids came home on Friday and have been so hard up for sunny weather they took 80 degrees as a summer day and ran through the sprinklers.

She still fits in last yrs suit but who am I kidding I bought her another one anyway. I love babies in swimming suits. Pretty much guarantees a smile out of me. Of course I make a face when I get into one too but it is more of a cringe. Adult fat is just not cute like baby fat. We need to do something about changing that

I got up early (to some) this morning and ran a 5K to raise $ for the Red Cross. Something our oldest youth in our ward organized (ok and a little help from their leaders LOL). My husband who has always claimed to hate running won the race in the adult division(yep even beat Lisa-my idol). Dave has dropped a bunch of weight and is so disciplined that anyone who hasn't seen him in a week will almost not recognize him. Nellie just last week asked Eric who the guy was on the bike that he was heckling was as he rode by. He has also taken up biking since I bought him a bike. He has also been known to say that he doesn't understand how people get into biking. He now does 26 miles a few days a week. He looks great and I will admit some jealousy on my part. I get a little nervous about someone hitting him w/their car though and clench my butt for the hour he is gone, you know what I mean by that like when you are at the dentist and you notice you have been doing that your whole appt. Logan won the 3K and Ella did the 5K pushing Neve in the stroller (she is such a tough chick---Ella I mean.....Neve just likes to scream). My little Sam ran a 1K w/a little help from his Dad. When I saw him and Carter running down the sidewalk as fast as they could I kinda started to cry (yeah I have admitted before about what a joke I am). I was just kind of proud to see him running his little heart out. I myself don't run very fast but I enjoy it just the same. Shortly after the race a little headache started to rear its hideously ugly head.

I took Sam to soccer and it got worse and then Aimee drove us to Lagoon for Ella's competition and all hell broke loose in this head. Luckily I wasn't so much in denial that I had an imitrex in my bag (2 actually). I was a joke and finally when the comp was over the drug kicked in.
Sure glad I was w/someone who understands the dynamics of migraines
Awesome zombie Mom!Abbey/Ella/Emma

Just to add a tad bit more token randomness to this blog. Dave came home w/a surprise for me. A Mac notebook. I looked at him and was happy but said "why, did you get the new one"? he sheepishly had to reply "yes"
He still does feel a little guilty about stealing my gift of a Mac so many yrs ago but not enough to stop only giving me his cast offs. I really wouldn't appreciate the new stuff anyway.
I'm still sort of a pencil and paper kind of freak.

And this evening as Dave got dinner and bathed kids I sat in a chair, half baked and I finally finished my Family Tree that we did for YW a few weeks ago. I made the girls promise to finish theirs that week so they could give it to their Mom for Mothers Day. I went against my better judgement and followed Kellys advice about the heart around my letter carving in the tree (I've always been a little anti hearts). Good call there Kelly. I am so grateful to have some great crafty idea flowing leaders serving right along side me since I lack majorly in that dept. I really like them w/out their ideas but the ideas do kind of seal the deal. (;
Moral to this random----I do not feel sorry for myself about migraines ailing me because I know every person has their thing that sucks, it just annoys the crap out of me when so much time is wasted that could be spent being productive (like smashing the snails that are eating my plants). I hate sitting around and "resting", it makes me ornery. I'm not cut out for rest during daylight hours but don't even think about stealing the night time kind! I love that stuff!

They were slow to follow, or so it appears

2011-05-08T14:55:00.002-06:00

Just to get it all out, what's in my head

2011-05-07T21:37:00.003-06:00

I got my first ride in a fire truck yesterday! and no it was not fun!
Neve (my little screamin deamon) likes to get into her car seat by herself (we all know the independent 2 yr old routine). So, yesterday it was time to take Logan to soccer so as she started climbing in I ran in the house to grab something and as I walked out the door I saw her crash to the ground, side top part of her head first. I ran and picked her up and she screamed so I am thinking it probably hurt a lot and since she was standing on a booster in a suburban when she fell, it must really hurt. Then suddenly she went unconscious. Holy crap I just got the chills again typing that out. I felt the blood drain from my face and apparently Logan could see that I was worried and he started to get a panicky look. She woke up and was acting weird and then went unconscious again so I ran to the phone and called 911. I have called police many a times living right across from a park where all sorts of shady things go on but never ever for an emergency for one of my children. Something about all of it felt so foreign and wrong. The guy on the other end did his whole routine as I kept trying to keep her from falling asleep. The first thing he told me is not to pick her up............uh too late! I don't know a single mom who would not run over and pick their kid up from a fall. I get the reasoning behind not moving them but reason flies out the window when a kid falls. My kids are not lovers of falling asleep and I couldn't keep the girl awake. She kept collapsing and couldn't hold her head up straight. I felt sick & my emotions were trying their hardest to make a debut. I took her out in the backyard to get some wind on her (& me if I am being honest) and could hear a couple of firetrucks coming so I sent Logan and Sam to the driveway so they would know where to go and to come in through the garage. (thank heavens Ella was w/my mom when this unfolded...makes me tear up just to think of her witnessing this). So seven thousand (at least) EMT's, firemen and such enter my kitchen and start asking me things and her things. She wouldn't respond even to me but then I had a glimmer of hope when Nellie walked in and she "half smiled" at her so I knew she at least recognized someone.
These guys were so good, I know it takes special people to do the things they do but they really couldn't have been any more awesome. The oldest (maybe lead) guy after all the six thousand and something others left told me he wanted to take her to the hospital to have a CT scan since she was not acting "normal". Then they told her that they were going to put DORA's backpack on her & gave her a stuffed frog (which Dave says is a turtle but its not). She didn't make a peep, not so much as a blood curdling scream so I knew something was not right. They loaded her little body on a backboard & on a stretcher. She looked so little and sad and the emotions started pushing again. I saw a crowd around my house and couldn't look at them for fear one of their compassionate faces would make me burst into tears. I grabbed the phone to call Dave and Nellie took my boys. I very calmly told Dave what happened and apparently my calmness made him more nervous. The last time I was calm about bad news was when Ella was a baby and they told me she needed to be tferred to PCMC & I was fine until a Dr. said "you are handling this all so well", I instantly burst into tears and didn't stop crying literally for 2 days straight. Dave had every reason to be nervous of my calmness.
So the guys did great talking to me and what not but then my nose started to get that cold "im about to cry" feeling and i was about to lose to it when my phone beeped and a friend had sent me a hilarious pic of something she knows I hate. I told her it must have been inspired. ha ha.

So to make this long long story even longer, they did a CT scan which she held very still for and then once that expensive test was run she started to perk up and in fact was starting to be silly crazy. Dave says that is how you feel when you have a concussion. I think when I had mine I also had post traumatic stress issues so I don't remember feeling at all silly....crazy yes!

So my little girl has a concussion. She was grumpy today & did a lot more screaming than normal which I was patient with of course but she seems to be good. She keeps saying "mom I fall outta car and get hurt". I told her to never do that again and she said "why"? and I said "because it hurts my feelings when you do that" and she said "I sorry Mommy".

Logan has nicknamed her concush!

All I know is that I never ever ever want a child I am holding to faint or be unconscious ever ever again. That was the most horrible feeling I think I have ever experienced.
Horrible!(said Lisa style)

Now I have been in an ambulance, Fire truck and Life flight. We are covered in this house and those "fun" times can be had by others. Glad to have em' but even more glad to not need em'.
I'm glad whatever I was to learn in all this wasn't at the price of a broken little girl.
Man I love her little guts!

I was thinking last night of these EMT's out of uniform (no not naked out of uniform) and realized how average Joe they were but ladies is there just not something about uniforms that add to or even make a fellow handsome. It is weird. I wonder if a guy at Hot Dog On A Stick would be cuter w/or w/out the tall hat. LOL

Sidenote: Ella did find out after Nellie took my boys to my Moms and Sam proudly announced what had happened even though my Mom and Logan had done their best for her not to find out. Luckily my mom was their to calm her fears. Faye came running out to the car and said "Oh Neve I was soooo worried"

No need for greed or hunger

2011-05-02T22:07:00.005-06:00

Oh Dear, my sweet little Ella.
So on the long drive home from Logans soccer game tonight I decided to tell Ella about Osama since the flags are always up on her Birthday & she is aware of what happened that day. So we got on to discussing the heroic efforts of the people who 1. stopped the other planes from hitting the targets and 2. of the rescue people who were well aware they may die but still tried to save other people.
So then Logan says that he thinks it is dumb for people to have not tried to stop them when they knew they would die anyway. I told him that sometimes we don't know how we will respond in certain situations and sometimes you are braver than you knew and sometimes you are not as brave as you thought but that it doesn't necessarily mean that the people who tried to stop things are better than people who didn't, they are just wired differently.
So anyway to better drive home this point I explained a story about a house that was on fire a week or so ago and how some young guy ran into the house and saved a 19 month old little girl but his friend who was with him didn't go into the house.
So Logan says "uh mom, Ella is crying" and the proceeds to kind of make fun of her a little. So, I got mad at him and told him that it isn't stupid for her to care about others even if they are strangers. So later after she is ready for bed I see that she is upset again and I explained to her that "this story" had a happy ending and that the little girl was saved. So I said "Why are you so upset, it is good she got saved" and she bursts again into tears and sobbing says "But I just keep thinking of Neve"
What a sweetheart she is, an emotionally disastrous sweetheart! Can you imagine in like 40 years when she is old enough to be married and pregnant? YIKES!

I then took a minute to talk to her about it not being Neve and that Neve is fine and so is the little girl (can you say anxiety pills in the future.......poor girl.........I feel her pain)

Logan thinking he is so funny walks up to me and kinda rubs his shoulder against mine and leans in real close to my ears and whispers "Mom, I think ya better quit tellin your stories"

On an unrelated note, today Sam asked me if I thought the world would ever run out of chocolate milk and I said "not unless all the brown cows die" and he totally believed me and said "Yep, that is pretty true" happy as a pig in stink!

Neve says
"I not a Gee-Sus, I a Neve"
"I not a poopy monster, you the poopy monster"
"Where are the peoples" (she says this whenever there are a group of kids at our house & she can't find them)

We gotta get off this rock, Chuck

2011-04-26T13:24:00.006-06:00

Ella & Faye on Easter Day

"Hey Axe, Smile!"
snap

"Hey Axel, if you smile I will let you play my i-pod touch"
snap

No joke that is really how that went
This next photo just cracks me up, partly because this is not all the grandkids and partly for the faces. If you watch Parenthood the little one making the face looks just like Max on that show

This is just to fool people into thinking she is sweet

All said by Neve in one day (most of them in a screaming voice that I hate)

Fine Mom, I'm gonna punch you in the face
I sorry Sam, I not do it again!
Mom, Sammys a freakin jerk
Mom Faybee is my best friend
Mom, Your a witch? (this seemed more like a question)
Mommy, you are nice
Mom, I'm not aterrabull-ull, you a terrabull-ull
Mom, your hair is pretty
Mom let me go potty reely qwickly
I'm gonna bite you!
Mom you not nice
Mom I wanna ice cream- rye-ite-now!
MOVE, sucker!
Excuse me, I burped!
Ella, You a poopy diaper head
Shutup, you stupid! (when i get after her for this one she quickly says, "I stupid" and laughs to avoid getting in trouble)
You a buttface!
I no wanna-a-a-a take-a a nappa!!!!!

Right now the mean side is winning w/this 2 year old schizophrenic! (and the screaming side)

I can honestly say I have no idea where she has heard some of these but on the other hand I know exactly where she heard the others and I have some kids who need a pump of soap in their mouths and maybe me just a quarter of a pump. (I'm to blame for the poopy diaper head one)

There is freedom w/in, there is freedom w/out

2011-04-23T20:39:00.004-06:00

Sarah came and taught my YW girls how to do fondant cake decorating
I am not very good at such things

But she is and so were the girls. Sarah told them that they were way better at it than some of the ladies she took a class with. No, I wasn't in her class! but had I been I'm sure she would have been talking about me.
I think it is kind of funny that sometimes people do things that they are not good at yet they seem oblivious to the fact that they are not good at it.
I'm pretty aware of my non-strengths and creating is one of them.

I was kind enough to give up my cake to these guys. I guess Sarah never lets her girls decorate because this is a lot of work for a "fun play dough Like" time so they were thrilled to get a chance. They have some practicing to do I think.and I gave up yet another chance for me to decorate to these dweeby looking boys and they made a "shocker" of a cake. Never had any idea it would have some sort of BYU on it.

Next on my busy work
Lisa & I had a major increase of eggs again
I think we ended up w/1818 eggs this year (once all the really late entries made it to me)
I have issues and insist on tying knots in the baggies & I get mocked by fellow crazy people who do different types of crazy things but wouldn't think of tying knots in bags because that's just for the mentally insane.
This is just my pile before it was complete and didn't include Lisa's nor all the really late entries
We did have some fun w/the baggie tying----the kids anyway. He's the brown egg in the middle and she's the peachy one w/lots of teeth

This is the only photo I got of the hunt minus one w/many Harmons in it all w/really grumpy looking faces but Dave had to help Neve do the hunt so he couldn't be cameraman this time.
I'm really banking on Keri for some decent photos

Did I happen to mention anything about some really late eggs?
(and if u r reading this, no it was not u w/the late eggs I repeatedly mention)
I like doing this and I hope all the great helpers do too
But man, I am tired!
P.S. Kiwi Bakery in Magna donated doughnuts to us for this and we loved them before they have been kind to us because their food is good but we love em' more now. I will not tell anyone that their meat pies are to die for. I heard their fish is good too but I do not partake of fish.
P.S.S.-Winnie is one lucky dog and has found most of the eggs the older group didn't.

So why on earth should I moan

2011-04-17T23:20:00.004-06:00

Dirt under my nails (even w/gloves on) on my knees and streaks across my face. Sunburned tops of ears and scalp. Sun kissed nose and cheeks (face ones). Majorly chapped lips. Dry mouth. Unquenchable thirst. Restless nights sleep. Too hot or too cold. Take out for dinner. Grass clippings all over the house. Barely able to move.

Why is all that good?

Because a whole day spent in the backyard, in the dirt, ends up looking mighty nice to these eyes. I'm not sure that my yard "work" should bring me such joy but it does.
It does feel daunting sometimes w/this yard (and oh yeah these children I am supposed to take care of) but once I get into the thick of it, I am thoroughly satisfied. The bugs could go away minus worms, beetles, butters, and lady's but other than that and whomever lets their dog poop in my front yard I could do it all day long, most every day! Don't even get me started on when I get to break out the hose! Let us just say I am not "water wise", I like to waste (SHAME!)
I even like the smell of dirt. Clean dirt though, not dirty dirt like dust.
Does that make sense? It does to me but that's not sayin' much.

Sometimes I say stupid things that I think

2011-04-11T21:02:00.003-06:00

Sam: "Finlay you have to sometimes give your toys to babies, because babies can be really hard to handle"
"Mom where do you think the best place on this earth would be?" uhhhh Me:"Disneyland?" Sam:"Yeah mom but I mean like the temple, but maybe the church might be the best because like at church you can make some noise but when you enter the chapel doors in the temple like you can't even make one single sound" (word for word and who taught him chapel doors?)

I said "In fact" yesterday during my YW lesson and it dawned on me that either he learned to say "in fact" from me or I was learning to say it from him

"Mom if you were going to make a shirt would you want cloth or paper or wood?" I say "Well wood would probably hurt and paper would rip so probably the cloth" he says "yeah and like cardboard would be ridiculous!"

Neve speak (she speaks really clearly so I enjoy the few she messes up)
Last Day=Yesterday
Winnie don't like me=I don't like winnie
No lock my door=don't shut my door
ubabubdawhirlsohi=up above the world so high
I no like da backroom=I don't like the vacuum
It scared a me=I'm scared of it
I farted=I farted (this is always announced when it is really quiet and we are in a public place)

Sam has been teasing Neve a little lately and he likes to call her Nibbel and she gets so mad and starts screaming "I not nibbel, mom sammy call me nibbel" She really hates to be called this so today it was going on in the car again and I am kind of laughing
and I say "hey Sam, what is a nibbel anyway?"
and he says "uh mom like a small crumb of a bite"
lightbulb.....oh....N-I-B-B-L-E....ha ha

After the flood all the colors came out

2011-04-09T20:46:00.001-06:00

Just at your earliest convenience!!!

Hoppin down the bunny trail

2011-04-01T22:12:00.003-06:00

When the house starts getting stacks like this it means its almost here
Piles and piles of eggs are in our future
and lots of baggies
Ready Lisa?

Upgrade

Logans clothes are getting larger
therefore space in his drawers (the dresser kind) is becoming scarce
Old dresser

IKEA to the rescue again
much improved in more ways than just the space
New dresser

Now if I can just get him to shut the drawers after removing an item of clothing

I also got Dave (me) a new office chair for me for his Birthday
He got me a Mac for mine a few yrs ago and I never can use it
since he took it over the day it came (pay back is a some sort of dog)
Samuel tried so hard to not tell but
he accidentally yelled at me to tell him where the chair was.
He was so sad and started crying because he had ruined the surprise
(even though I chose the chair so it wouldn't be a surprise to me anyway)
So today he said "uh mom, you know I didn't totally ruin the surprise because Dad doesn't know what color the chair is or how comfortable it is". Some Kid!

Nothing’s gonna ever keep you down

2011-03-28T15:43:00.003-06:00

Sam: Mom I have a great idea, I will stay here w/Neve and you go to McDonalds and buy us happy meals for lunch.
Me: Sam, do you think that is a good idea to leave you here alone
Sam: Well its not great because a robber might come but its fine mom because I pretty much know Karate.

He is such a creative little creature (and manipulative). Some times his creations make it hard for me to use the computer though. I think I have come upon some sort of battle.

Belted by gamma rays

2011-03-27T20:57:00.006-06:00

I went to SEP's the other day. To Logans to be exact. I was so proud! For those who know him, they know that he was a very hard child and no one but my Mom ever had the guts to let me know how hard he was. She always said that her 8 kids combined didn't have that much anger in them. He literally used to turn into the "hulk" when he was mad. To top that off he was also sick, all of the time!!! I don't have many pics of him where one of his eyes doesn't have that "off" look of a child w/a fever. He had RSV and then the accompanying asthma so that added to the fun. The kid had every weird illness and he was one of the children that still got the chicken pox even w/the vaccination. Anyway back to the SEP. His teacher, who by the way is awesome, said "you know I don't know all of the history of Logan but I do remember you warning me about his temper and some problems he had last year but besides just a couple of little mad moments at the first of the year, I just haven't seen it. He is such a good kid, he helps me w/whatever I need and he even helps all the other kids in the class w/the things they don't understand. He is just a really good kid!" Mr. Stock also showed me all of Logans scores and grades, which are awesome! His grades are always awesome but that was so minuscule compared to the other part, it really brought tears to my eyes. He has finally tamed that beast for the most part! He will still be Logan and be strong willed and determined and persistent and as much as sometimes those traits make a Mom nuts, I don't want him to lose them because I know channeled properly they make leaders and not followers. I really believe that he hated being "little". He was always drawn to older boys and still is. I think part of it might be that he doesn't feel little anymore and he can do a lot of what he wants to.
I know I am hard on him & I try to lay off a little but I just never thought that he would be such a good kid w/such control of his temper at 10 yrs old. I'm not blind to the faults my children have but I can be proud of their strengths especially if they worked hard for them. I know having him in sports and having coaches and good teachers at school and church has made all the difference for him. I wish I could do something about getting some of these great teachers a raise rather than the pay cuts they seem to always get!
I really have appreciated all the people who haven't passed judgment on Logan for his temperament.
There have been many many people who have & I have wanted to punch a lot of them in the face but now I just feel a little more like sticking my tongue out at them.
Thhhbbbbbbbbtttt (insert spit flying everywhere here and maybe the bird).

Logan says "I'm the king of chocolate cake"
so Sam replies "I'm a little fudgy guy"

I pull into the driveway to Logan doing some sort dance, strutting back and forth across the driveway w/the somewhat choreographed looking dance going on. I get out and say "what was that?" He said "an Irish jig" so of course I said "who taught you that"
and he smugly replied "its a natural born talent"

Take a look at these crows feet, sitting on the prettiest eyes

2011-03-24T00:08:00.004-06:00

MIA
is how I feel about blog world even though it has only been a week since I posted.
The thing that I realized is how much I read others blogs and I am usually pretty timely about it.
I had a "crappy" week (ha ha)
My colonoscopy went w/out a hitch I suppose (I was asleep)
Now I have to starve again tomorrow so I can get the sm. intestine checked out
whaa whaa poor me!
I often wonder if I hope they find something or hope they don't
Hmmmmm?

anyway
I helped my Mom take down wallpaper in her kitchen yesterday w/Nellie.
A couple of thoughts
1. I get that seven year itch w/redoing things from my Mom (sometimes mine is 3 yrs)
2. We are all falling apart in one way or another
a.) My moms shoulder crunches when she tries to work up too high
b.) My shoulder aches for 2 days if I try to work up too high doing repetitive motions
c.) Nellie should be younger than me becuz her shoulder doesn't hurt at all--but her shins do.
3. How in the world did our parents do everything "manually"? (this is more of a random thought but stems because my parents don't have a dishwasher and I see a clothes line out in the side yard while I peel)
4. Wallpaper is sticky
5. Time flies whether your having fun or not.
6. And sometimes I am and sometimes I'm not

On a better note I stayed up really late w/some gals and a Sam and Boyd (and sons) and really enjoyed the company. Staying up that late is only worth it in certain company. I really Love that whole family. They make me smile, and laugh, and if I were the peeing type, I would probably pee. Thanks for coming to visit Natalie. There are 5 sisters and I kept asking a couple to tell me who their least favorite sister is. They wouldn't tell me but then again they were all there so that might have been smart. I can't pick my least favorite out of them either.

I joined a weight loss competition blog.
As long as they find something that weighs 5lbs or more and can remove it in my sm intestine I am game to them "finding" something. That is not a fun place to play hide and seek. Your right, who chooses that profession? Who chooses to be a school teacher too? blech, all those kids, double blech. So back to myself and losing weight.
Really my only determination to win is the $25 gift card to Target they give out each quarter even though that makes no sense since the final prize is a cash prize worth way more. You say Target and I get hooked. Speaking of my SIL just informed me that one is going in near me, very near me and that has made my month. Dave may not like it so much since I do returns there all the time and then go back in the store and spend double w/out fail every time. I hope all the Walmart people stay at Walmart and don't come parading in. Keep your prices a tad big higher please Target, never thought I'd ask for that.

Neve: Poops on the rug and when I come look at it she says "I'n kidding"

I wish there was no robbers so we didn't have to solve this mystery (concerned about cops looking for a guy on a skateboard in the neighborhood)
Okay this is like a get together, a popsicle get together (while he, Logan and Neve try to sit on the same chair to eat a fruit bar)
Neve's new thing that she says is "your the best, mom" anytime I do anything she asks. She heard Sam say it once and figured it was necessary to say.
Neve do you need to go potty. Neve -"no, I good"
Sam at church is being really noisy during sacrament and I tell him to shhhhsh and he says "Where do you think we are? Houston?"

We’re sitting there like idiots drinking coffee without a piece of cake!”

2011-03-16T20:47:00.003-06:00

I spent the day w/my good old friend

and Jerry's Wife

Making some enemies

and some of my loves

into sneaky little purees to add to food so not only will my kids eat more vegetables, but I will too. Plus lets be honest I really really needed something to occupy my starving mind so why not put food under my nose for 6 straight hours? Not my finest idea!
What I wouldn't do for just a salted cracker.
tomorrow I will eat a whole package of saltines out of spite
Okay actually I really like Saltines

Ask the local Gentry

2011-03-15T10:46:00.003-06:00

Can this really be called living ?
(okay the Coke maybe)

Anyone guess what procedure April gets to have done?
Back in the day, like maybe even only a few years ago I don't believe if i had a blog I would ever post about something so, so, well, embarrassing. I was talking to my friend the other day about how as you get older you lose your inhibitions more and more. I think this is one of those "proof of that" moments.
What can a person do? I have been having pain in where I thought might be my ovaries (cover eyes here) but when being examined by a Dr. he questioned how many kids I had. He knows I have four but he was mocking me for thinking my ovaries were anywhere near that high and in the middle of my abdomen. Hey the pain was toward the back, what do I know plus my babies weren't born from an ovary. DUH!
The culprit seems to be the small intestine and since I have for years (ever since I have memory really) had stomach issues (we can leave it at that) the good old Doc wants to send cameras all directions in my body and maybe have them meet in the middle(yeah I made that part up) to see whats up, or down.
I will be sedated so what I don't know wont kill me, although I appreciate all my friends horror stories just to scare me. The thing that is the most entertaining to me about it is that I just keep feeling sad that for one whole day I can't eat any food. Now that is torture. Broth? thats not food. The coke is my only saving grace I think. I was so happy that it is considered a "clear" liquid. Yes, how pathetic am I?
Anyway Dave and I recently watched an episode of "men of a certain age" that was about these men getting this done but for them it was cancer screening because of their "certain age". There were a lot of jokes in it referring to this procedure that I found hilarious at the time. Maybe not so much anymore.
The nurse who calls to ask for all the info yesterday asked me if I was having this done due to an injury. Huh? Maybe its just a 'standard' question. I hope anyway.

So that is what my tomorrow is like

While Neve is living it up "Al Bundy" style

she is literally shouting out orders to me from the couch in her undies

Broken back to the ceiling

2011-03-12T19:57:00.004-07:00

Here are a couple of After shots

Obviously I have to wait for the paint to fully dry to redecorate

I will finally get this carpet cleaned on Monday and then relaid w/new pad hopefully right after so I can put this room back together. Half the time I get half the workout just hauling these around the room to different spots. I think I might actually decorate this room when it is done. Now I have to think of how

I couldn't be any happier w/the colors in Ellas room
FAB----U----LOUS!
Now I have to find a few non-purple/green things to match to finish it.
I suppose now Dave and Logan can return home since I completed several projects around here and we had cereal for dinner several nights in a row. It feels like time.
1. Paint Exercise Room
2. Paint/clean Ellas room
3. Hang a clock
4. Potty train Neve
5. Get all Diapering items out of Neves room
6. Buy and re-pot 4 new plants
7. Start watching "House"
8. Turn 35
9. Eat one more bag of Cadbury mini eggs

Sam's preschool wish if he found a pot o gold
He likes numbers and I actually did learn via him that google is a number
He thinks they are called Milky Waves
hmm- I just noticed we r supposed to be in Hawaii when U2 comes to SL and I have 2 tickets. Bummer!

Try to keep myself away from myself and me

2011-03-10T09:13:00.004-07:00

Before

Dave is out of town and that must be why the paint store calls to me
It knows of my loneliness (;

Shining shimmering splendid

2011-03-09T15:30:00.004-07:00

Sam Says:
Mom, happy birthday and I hope you have a great day!
Mom, I was just thinkin' about telling you happy birthday again.
(He was admiring some gifts I got)
This is some pretty good stuff you got here!
I was lookin at this spray, its pretty nice! I put some of this lotion on my feet, I hope thats okay,
and mom all this bath stuff is kind of like reminding me that I wanna take a bath right now.

I was laying in bed not feeling well and Sam came in and said "Mom, I am so sorry to bother you, but what is on the front door?" I told him it was a piece of carpet for someone to pick up and he said "I was thinkin' it was like roast beef or somethin"

On our way out from dumping the potty pot in the real toilet I caught Neve taking a sip from the pot because i had left a little water in it from washing it out. I said "eww Neve don't drink out of that it is really gross" and she said "I'n juss kiddin". She tells me to shut up too and then hurries and says that so she doesn't get in trouble.

I took the kids to YW/YM tonight because Dave and Logan are in Vegas for some BYU B-ball stuff. Neve had her first outing since starting to potty train and she told me she had to go and I took her and she thought the church's big toilet was cool so she tried it, and then tried it, and then tried it, and then I got sick of her trying it. I forgot until tonight that you want them to do the big potty so bad and then once they do they want to keep doing it even when they don't have to go and it is really really annoying. Oh well at least our first time out she did great and had no accidents. Sam entertained a few people w/his songs and dance. I was shocked that he knew his whole song for his Part as Aladdin. I didn't teach it to him, I can't even keep the tune right.

Dave gave me a box of dark chocolate bars before he left and I just looked them up online. No wonder he said they better taste good. I barely dare taste one. They are dark and dark is good, chocolate bars or skin, I even like my toast on the dark side.

The youth in our ward did some good/fun stuff for the talent show and I am impressed w/their willingness to share their talent. I never would have done that as a kid, unless it was just stuff as a joke. I hate the spotlight, it makes me uncomfortable and sweaty, and hurts my eyes. Hillari had the leaders do synchronized swimming which of course was funny and a joke and I got to look completely ridiculous w/the intentions of looking that way so it was fun and I was okay w/it.

I was realizing today how Ella helps me so much. So many times I don't know what I would do w/out her, literally. She will be such a good Mom someday but right now I am just so glad she helps pick up my slack as one and she never complains about it. I need to get some pics from Aimee but she is pretty proud that her team took 1st place at the clogging competition last Saturday. Sam and Neve drove me a little nuts being there tonight but I almost forgot that Ella even came because she blends right in so well.

At the closing prayer Neve came and sat on my lap while I was kind of crouched down and she said really loudly "mom I wont pee on your lap" and then right before the Amen she said "I farted!" luckily I think only all the other Moms heard her. One more reason to hope potty training is quick, so we can quick talking about pee, poop, farting, toilets, bums etc...... Not that we will but just so we "can" if we want to.

Everything was easy when I had a diaper:

2011-03-05T21:47:00.005-07:00

Sam Says: Mom what if we had two babies and Neves name was bump and the other baby's name was goose? (he smiles like, do you get my cleverness mom).
Mom My tongue was made for lickin' chocolate!

Its that time again just w/a new specimen

I hate potty training but I love their little tiny bums in underwear. They are so cute and then their tiny bums in pants w/no diaper. Neve is a willing participant even though I'm not sure I was ready to do this. I'm pretty sure she is. I do not have the patience to do it in one day today like I did w/the others. I'm thinking of doing a more slow and steady approach so I can prolong the suffering. I really really really just hate sitting around in the kitchen all day to accomplish the toilet training in one day. So stupid I realize but I need a tranquilizer or something to help me sit still and since I have none I will just stick w/this way.
Neve calls the panties her "wundies".

Will you still need me, will you still feed me

2011-03-02T14:13:00.005-07:00

What the heck?
Neves way "oh a heck"

Drove a long way today to pick out some carpet and Sam asked questions the whole time!
I think that might be why I feel so tired. Or possibly because I decided to run to the dealership last night to pick up Daves car instead of hitching a ride. I enjoyed it but my body ached all night....is that normal? I'm getting old.
Anyway here are a few of his questions and go ahead and ponder some of them yourselves.
"Would you go to jail if you crashed down signs? How did cops shoot people before guns were a-vented? How did people write when there were no computers? How did people write before pens were a-vented? Where did people go before they had jails? (stupid me made the mistake of telling him that they just killed people when they did stuff wrong) Mom how did they kill them w/out a gun, oh wait I know you might say a knife but I mean if they didn't have a knife?
Okay so cops just try to shoot people? (me-no only if they or other people are in danger and if the bad guy has a gun, then they would shoot them but they try to not kill people if they don't have to). Okay so what if a guy had a sword and was coming toward the cops?" (Me-then they might have to shoot him. Samuel you talk a lot!) After that he just started talking to Neve and I zoned out (yes comforting given the fact I was still driving at a high rate of speed)

Samuel: "Mom I did a really important job today. I went to the bathroom and used all the toilet paper so I got a new roll and put it on the little thing. That is great huh?"

Oh if only the men across America could learn this small little kindness toward women everywhere who share their toilet area. I don't care about the seat up or down, just don't pee on it and replenish the paper if you end up needing to use it. You see, females always have to use the paper so unless you want to step in dribbles from us from the floor just take one second and replace the roll. Is this only at my house? Now at least I got this one little guy on my manners team. He's pretty much on my team no matter what....who am i kidding.

I had a talk w/Dave about the toothpaste a while back after making him have his own tube for a year. Seriously that crusty wad at the end makes me want to throw up and then whats the point of brushing after the bile has eaten everything off your teeth anyway. He has been very conscious of it ever since. I would half the time clean off the end of his tube anyway so I didn't have to look at it. Now I just need to work on the kids not leaving spittage all over in the sink from brushing. BABY STEPS!

I'm pretty sure someone I know who may read this blog is pregnant and not telling. Just give it up already. I will never ask but I already know. Keep in mind you aren't exactly a body type who can hide it very well. I hope this smokes you out! (;
and it ain't Natalie

Saw the whole thing, dude. First you were all like "whoa", and we were like "whoa", and you were like "whoa..."

2011-02-28T19:45:00.002-07:00

Sam is my kid who never needs real toys to entertain himself. There is always a bad group of guys and a good group. I'm not sure how he tells them apart w/these. He makes up his own games as well as his own rules and he can also change the rules to suit his best interest.

Neve is my girl who never needs real toys to entertain herself either

and I don't need any hobbies since scraping this off (not whip cream like it looks) took several hours and is not completely removed a week later. You see, white out doesn't come off easily.
Never thought about the fact that white out looks like nail polish. Consider yourselves warned!

Neve loves Bras

and boobies, she always tells me she likes mine.
Not sure how I feel about that but I don't want to crush her spirit
She may own Victorias Secret some day
and I promise she will be the boss!

I'm picking paint again
as I do every few years
I get sick of it easily I guess
plus it is something that is so easy to change

One of these colors will go in my newly repaired from the Christmas eve disaster exercise room and the other possibly in Ellas room.
I bet it is easy to guess which one I won't be working out to.

Sam loved this book so much he fell asleep and let it crush his head

kind of like this post would if you were pathetic enought to be lying in bed reading it.
Summary of this week: PURDY BORING!
Minus the giant bag of Cadbury mini eggs I ate! (that was exciting)

Nothing is real and nothing to get hung about

2011-02-19T22:52:00.003-07:00

Dave and I went to dinner tonight before the Adults ONLY session of stake conference
(Its more fun if you type it out like that)
So we got seated and they put us at one of the stupid tall tables w/the tall chairs. I was instantly miffed. Dave said do you want me to have them move us and I said "no" being the passive aggressive that I am. It took me about 10 minutes to shake off the grump!
Those tables are so stupid!!!

Today is My Grandpa Brays birthday. Or should I say it would be his birthday? Either way I don't have a ton of memories of him except that he seemed so "big" to me, he loved strawberries, his birthday was one day before Nellies, his funeral was the first time I saw my Dad cry and he is half of where my Dad came from (maybe more like 95%). I wish I had more of a life history of him because I love comparing that crap to our personalities etc... My Mom's side has put together a book w/some of that stuff and it is fun to see which feisty relative I am more like. I think Nellie is much more like my Dad and that is why they irritate each other. Maybe grandpa would have irritated her too. Maybe one day I will know all that fun stuff. Notice edges of this cake have not been eaten

"Sweet fancy Moses"

2011-02-14T09:33:00.007-07:00

What did the pants say to the shirt? I'm a guppy (this answer spawns from Ariel calling Flounder a guppy when he doesn't want to explore) Sam loves to tease Neve by calling her a guppy and she screams back "I not a guppy" and it makes her very mad so of course he loves to do it. What did the Elbow say to the Neve? Waaa Waaaa Waaa Waaa

Looks like Sam has started the jokes that make no sense phase.....yeah for us!

I was driving Sam to preschool and he was just singing to his hearts content to the radio some song that I had no idea he knew and then after, this was playing by talking heads as I got out of the car to walk him in
Psycho Killer Qu'est-ce que c'est fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa far better Run run run run run run run away Psycho Killer Qu'est-ce que c'est fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa far better Run run run run run run run away

So I get back in the car and hear Neve singing
"psycho kitty ya ya ya psycho kitty ya ya ya"
I got a good laugh but then a while later I went out for a run and when we got back I just unplugged my headphones so my phone just kept the music on and it was playing Glees version of Bust a Move
If you want it baby you've got it (repeat)
and Neve comes in my room just jutting her hips out from side to side and moving her arms a little like Elaine and singing "I no wan it, I no got it baaaby"
She's already a little singer.
I love the sound of little kids singing along to the radio!

Sam tried a red hamburger on Sunday (his first time really trying hamburger) and much to his surprise he loved it and ate a whole one (no one tell him they are full of onions). Yesterday he had a snickers bar and before now he had never had a nut and he liked it. Disneyland really is magical for our family! Now we are up to a sloppy joe and bacon pie (which is like quiche). He's finally eating! Most kids pick it up after a few weeks of baby cereal but Sam is a slow learner.

I got my very favorite present the other day. My blog from 2009 made into a book. Well, 2 books actually. Apparently 2009 proved to be more eventful than 2008 or I got long winded.
This is one of my favorite presents ever! Everyone always says they are going to make their blog into a book but I don't know anyone who actually does it. Do you?
Man Sam was funny that year w/his special thing and all! Thanks Mike & Keri

And people tend to pass you over 'cause you're not standing out

2011-02-13T15:05:00.003-07:00

Sam: "What smells like sugar plums in here?"

So here's the problem
I really want to make some sugar cookies for Valentines but I know If I make them I will not stop eating them until they are gone. What to do? What to do?
Yeah right as if I am even really waffling about this decision as the butter sticks sit on the counter in the sun to soften up as I type.

Logan's indoor soccer ended so instantly he started Futsol. We went to the first game yesterday and had a new experience. When we walked in the doors I looked around in this place chuck full of people and we were the only "white" people there. They were all of course hispanic because it is soccer as I mentioned. I didn't care at all but I did notice and so did a lot of them. There were no rude looks or anything like we didn't belong but they did do some double takes. Anyway it stayed that way for a while until a few other players from his team showed up w/their caucasian brood. I realized for the first time how other minorities might feel except for there wasn't any negative feelings toward us like often times other minorities have to deal with. I love hispanic people and it makes me feel embarrassed to live in a place where so many people are rude to or about them. There is nothing about it that is okay or right or justified.
Anyway just something I hadn't experienced before and it was interesting but not in a bad way.
Logan had his first experience in exercise related "gas" pains yesterday and had to come out of the game because he thought he might die. I did some bowel massage on his abdomen to try to get it moved so he could play but sadly it took until the ride home for the beast to unleash. That stuff not only hurts the poor athlete but it kills all the poor suckers forced to ride home w/them. I am not normally much of a fart talker but this was funny to think he had to be removed from a game for "gas".
Dave thinks I am rude to blog about that but I vaguely recall a friend(I think Julia) mentioning something about gas being what unites us all as humans. She is right and we all know it!
I even just let him read it to make sure it wasn't too horrible. He is leery but still allowing it.
We love him stinky or not but prefer him "not"!

Did my time, took my chances

2011-02-11T08:54:00.005-07:00

A few random tidbits

Sam wanted me to buy him a caramel apple called Tiger tail or something like that and I told him I didn't think he would like it. He is very persistent and always knows he is right so that is the one he chose. So we are driving along after giving him a piece and in the back I hear "blech, more like tiger guts"! I said "didn't I tell you that you wouldn't like it and now look you don't like it, maybe next time you should listen to me when i tell you something" He replied "mom, it's like you think you are the boss of the world!" He informed me later that I was only kinda right because he liked the "skin" of the apple. The "skin" being the caramel.

Last night I was helping Logan w/his scout book to pass off some things he can do at home and we were doing the section about tobacco/drugs/alchohol and there is a section about inhalants. He told Ella that Smencils are drugs and then pretends to be smelling a smencil for a while and then starts gyrating around saying "gimme some enchiladas". I'm not sure that he even knows that little detail about pot and the munchies but it was so funny and Ella started giggling like crazy. I think they all may have been tired including me because I found it a little too humorous myself.
Ella has a red bear that they fondly nicknamed "bloody bear" that is missing an eye. So Sam got a new bear from preschool yesterday from his teachers and he was making me guess what he got. I guessed four things and he said "one more guess" so I said a stuffed animal and he said "well mom you just can't guess that" so I guessed something else. He then pulls out this red bear and says "This is bloody bear jr." So, we now have two dolls that are Elbow and Elbow Jr. and 2 bears, Bloody bear and bloody bear Jr. I guess at least none of these odd named toys will ever be lonely.
Yeah pretty much this post is to just avoid all the things I really should be doing right now.
so just to stay off track for a few more minutes I am going to do something totally out of character for me.
I'm going to brag. Ok not really but for the first time in a very long time or ever I am letting myself be proud of myself . I am sure I have mentioned before that I have a little thing called PCOS which I found out after struggling to have all of my kids. I had mentioned all of my symptoms to many different OBGYNs and not until I went back to my awesome internal medicine Dr. did someone finally take my word for it and experiment w/some PCOS drugs to see if there was remedy for any of my problems. Sure enough 25 lbs quickly disappeared from my body which I more than deserved w/the amount of exercise I do and have done since having Logan. I also started functioning properly as a real "female" instead of half male (I will leave it at that........and your welcome). I think now that we are done having kids I would probably get pregnant really easily which is annoying but whatever it is what it is. So anyway I started feeling good again and like myself so I really started pushing myself physically but still being careful not to re-injure my legs. I took my measurements yesterday......gag.....but in total (i am going to be proud rather than embarrassed of what was) I have lost 30.3 inches in circumference on my body. Some of it is not circumference loss that husbands would be happy about but loss none the less. I have lost 48 lbs and I have worked very hard for it. 2 yrs were working hard w/out a pound lost because of PCOS...in fact I gained during that time. Don't get me wrong, it was not all about the disease. Some of it was poor eating but it is just amazing to me how once you get the machine running right it is a lot more forgiving about your bad days of eating.
I have been getting many compliments lately about losing weight and while it makes me feel good that other people can see that I look better it also makes me very uncomfortable. I think I would rather no one say anything w/how embarrassed it makes me feel but I do think it is kind of people to be aware of those around them and their efforts. Does that make sense? It is funny that I feel that way since I try to always notice and compliment people for weight loss because I know how daunting it can be.
Anyway I have just thought a lot lately about how I think so many people are vain and it bugs the crap out of me and then I realized how vain I have been all these years not feeling good enough or like I am somehow not a good person because I am overweight and I constantly think about my appearance w/unhappiness. I am working on that so I can continue on my judgements of other people w/a clear conscience (;
So my point in this long long drawn out blah blah is that I am choosing now to be proud of my hard work and I feel good about my efforts and I feel healthy and well and that feels so nice.
If only I had documented the # of gallons of sweat, since most of my effort was exercise and not much altering in food. I have completely worn out 3 machines and I feel good about that.
I am officially patting myself on the back and I don't want to talk about it again even though I'm not quite done losing.
I have to say in all this though that it is wonderful to have a husband like Dave who has never ever made me feel like I was any different no matter my weight or state of mind. I don't know if he is just oblivious or if he is just too nice but either way I am glad he is the way he is. I couldn't have handled one more person besides myself being critical of me. I sometimes like to act like I don't care but in reality I care a little too much sometimes.

I'm going there someday

2011-02-08T09:46:00.007-07:00

So Dave decided to surprise me and take a trip to Disneyland. He of course had to tell me a few days in advance since I would be the one packing. I wanted to surprise the kids since I have spent so much time mocking others about not telling their kids in advance about their vacations I thought I better try it first before I continue to knock it.

Angi made a little code puzzle for them to figure out that ended up saying "that happiest place on earth" and because of a recent talk in sacrament meeting Ella thought we were going to the temple.

We were going to leave right after Logans soccer game but since he got injured in the last game we checked them out of school early and left straight from there.Neve projectile vomited chocolate milk right around Provo so our trip started out properly for our kids. I get so bugged that we have pukers but since I spent the better part of last night w/my head in the bowl, I know right where they get it and this can't be blamed on the Dad.
Mine was migraine induced though and not just barfing for the fun of it like the kids.
We stayed in Vegas on the way down and then drove to California and went to Disneyland for a half day on Wed. Then Thurs through Sat. I have never been on a Saturday. Saturdays at Disneyland suck! even in February. We have made ourselves spoiled by only going in the lowest volume months. I saw fantasmic for the first time and the World of Color which was cool.
My favorite ride at Disneyland was closed for repairs which is Splash Mt. but I survived by riding Thunder Mt at least one hundred times w/Sam who loves that ride and is finally tall enough to ride. Luckily Matterhorn is open again, it was closed last Feb when we went. Surprise surprise Neves favorite was Dumbo.........the longest lined ride at the park. Still only 20 min at its longest so I won't complain.

Sam got to do the Star Wars thing and at one point the guy said "you remind me of my master yoda, little one". We got a great laugh out of that. This below picture really drives it home too

Sam tried some new foods each day and really like 3 certain ones which two are odd for a picky eater. He liked clam chowder w/sourdough bowl, polynesian chicken kabob and corn tortillas.Ella began eating more her first time to disneyland too so maybe there really is some magic there or maybe all that walking just makes them really hungry.

This pic is worth a thousand words w/the annoyingness of his age
We had a great time!
At one point i was taking pics of the kids on Tom Sawyers island and so I kept telling Neve to say Donald duck or mickey mouse or disneyland or whatever I thought of at the moment. From that point forward every time I tried to take Neves pic she would say "Donald Duck" and smile. Sam is a poser and asks to have his picture taken.....he's definitely not my kid even if he likes me most.

Last but not least, I think Dora has it dead on because I haven't seen a kid yet who doesn't go all nuts over maps.

strange impression

2011-01-29T22:35:00.000-07:00

From the listening ears of a 5 yr old right out his mouth.

I want to be the girl w/the most cake

2011-01-29T21:35:00.003-07:00

I realize I am easily impressed by things sometimes but this is on my niece Buffy's mp3 player and she made this movie. She is probably wondering why I stole it from her But even Dave said "how did she do that?" so maybe I'm not too far off to be impressed. 6th grade? What was I doing in 6th grade? riding the bus to the mall....and prank calling people. (see HUH)

And you daddy's an alcoholic

2011-01-28T11:19:00.003-07:00

"Mom I ate that entire bowl of ice cream, I'm quite the eater right?"
Yes Sam, quite!
A few days later and you can't even tell that he used to be One eyed Willie
Update on privacy: I just had this problem that was like that annoying fly that you can't ever track down to swat. I think "It" has been swatted so my blog stays public. My main issue w/it is that it doesn't update on the sidebar and that annoys me although I think Aimee found a way around that. Too bad I'm not savvy enough to figure that out.

Now everybody's on the run

2011-01-26T12:17:00.003-07:00

I had my first theft today
it was a total accident & now I will be required to "remember" to pay for it next time I go to Target which of course we all know will be soon anyway.
I was holding it to compare it to larger packages of hearing aid batteries you know, to get more for my money. Well somewhere between keeping track of 2 kids and why I was even in the store to begin with (a prescription), I slipped this into my pocket

I am at least glad that I wasn't caught and stopped by security (how embarrassing would that have been?) and I can just be the honest ingine next time I return that will be minus any embarrassing handcuffs.
So I just grabbed some on sale items, a few I want items, one Sam wanted item and some bread and this his how one bag ended up

Do you think it was subconscious on the "female" baggers part or just plain coincidence?

Now back to that prescription I before mentioned

periorbital cellulitis

This will be added to the list of "weird" illnesses my children have suffered.
Now before you run to wash the germs off your hands by just being near this photo you should know, it is not contagious. People normally think Sam is a cute kid but you should have seen the Target patrons looks of compassion for whatever they think may have hit this kid in the eye. They would look me up and down to see if I looked the "type". I don't know that child abusers have a "look" but I think I passed most times and they went on to thinking it was cute in a sad sort of way. He told one lady it was an eye infection when she asked what happened and she pulled her kids behind herself and politely scurried away. Can't say I blame her. ha ha

I heard from a wise canary

2011-01-23T16:04:00.004-07:00

So, when Neve fits and wants me to play kitchen I have to go play kitchen and pretend to drink drinks and eat play food and sit by her table (if I sat at the table i think the chair would break) and feed dollies and do dishes and so on and so forth.

This is the crap her dad gets away w/and its called playing kitchen.

The kitchen looks pretty abandoned to me

Dirty bunch of Rats!............the whole lot of them, especially DAD!

Thought on Today: I felt guilty and uncomfortable leaving R.S. opening exercises w/the Y.W.
Uncomfortable because I feel such a great responsibility and accountability now that I didn't before (I worry about measuring up) and guilty as other previous YW leaders stay seated. I know how hard letting go of the YM calling was for Dave and it makes me sad that I am sure these women (for the most part) feel the same. I also have a lot of positive feelings too but lets just wallow in the misery for a bit.