Just A Piece of Us

Easter time

2011-04-23T21:09:00.003-06:00

Tonight we did an activity that my sister in law Amber told us about several years ago. Its a treat that helps discuss the true meaning of Easter, the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Its simple, fun, and tastes good too!

What you need:

Large marshmallows
Crescent rolls
melted butter
cinnamon
sugar

The marshmallows represent the body of Christ. We talked about how white is a sign of purity and that Christ was pure and perfect.

The Crescent rolls represent the linens that Christ's body was wrapped in to prepare for burial.

The melted butter represents the burial oils and the cinnamon and sugar represent the burial spices.

First you anoint the body with oil and spices. Then you wrap it in the linens. Next you place it in the tomb (oven). We made a big deal of placing it in the tomb. We rolled a gigantic (imaginary) rock in front of the oven door. Bake as directed on crescent roll packaging. We also made a big deal of opening the tomb and discovering that the body of Christ was no longer in its linen wrappings. He had risen and lives again!

As I put Kenny to bed tonight he said, "Mom I don't feel so good. I think I ate too much Jesus..."

Snow!

2010-12-03T19:49:00.008-07:00

It finally snowed this week. Six inches the first day, 22 the next. There is a steady snow now. I've accepted the fact that the snow probably wont melt and go away for several months. The same way I learned to love the rain in Alabama. This world is so amazing. In Alabama I used to sit on my front porch and watch the constant down pour in awe and wonder. I felt much the same way tonight as I had the opportunity to watch the snow fall. The utter magical beauty of each flake dancing its way to earth took my breath away. I know I've seen snow fall before and I've felt the excitement and joy it brings, but I've never looked at a snow storm and paid attention to individual flakes before. I felt like I was watching it for the first time.

We hardly played in the snow in New Mexico. Mostly because by the time we got our winter gear on large pools of mud appeared. Here we have concrete! I love that I can let the kids play and there is virtually no mess. We've done a lot of playing. The first day, my boys were outside for 6 hours straight! I so did not think they would even last an hour. Taylor has taken it upon himself to help all the neighbors shovel their driveways. Its obvious it makes him feel good and he honestly expects nothing in return. I love my boys! Its funny that all the neighbors have been more "neighborly" since the snow. People stand out in it and chat way more than they ever did in the summer. I had a man come help me shovel yesterday. He said he was wandering around helping anyone who was shoveling because it helped him not think about the cigarettes he was craving. Sounds good to me.

I'm surprised at how much I'm enjoying the snow too. I've never loved the cold. Here I bundle up and head outside to be with my kids. As long as I dress right I hardly notice the cold. To see the joy on my kids faces makes it all worth it anyway. I don't mind the shoveling. It gives me a sense of accomplishment for some reason. The fact that I know I'll have to go out and do it all over in just a few hours again doesn't bother me at all. Weird.

The boys made a snow cave today. Its big enough that they can lay flat in it and sit up comfortably. They wanted to sleep in it tonight. They probably would have been fine if I let them, but that was a little much for me. Yesterday we made snow angels and had a snowball fight. Tomorrow we'll build a snowman and see if he lasts until we get back from NM after Christmas.

The road conditions are rough right now. Last summer the ABS and traction control went out on my car, so I'm learning a whole new style of driving. I tried to turn a corner yesterday and the car would have nothing of it. So we continued on straight until we found a corner my car approved of. We made it home eventually. The worst is when I stop at a red light it takes forever to convince my tires there is enough traction to get going again. I've ticked off quite a few drivers behind me. I'll get the hang of it.

For now I'll enjoy my winter wonderland.

Becoming self starters

2010-10-19T10:47:00.002-06:00

I'm trying not to micro manage my kids during homeschool. The last couple days have been an experiment for us. While the kids were in public school they would come home with hours of homework and expect me to sit right next to them while they worked on it. That is the way our homeschool work started. Every morning I would call, bribe, or yell to get everyone sitting on the couch so we could start our day. Not very effective for bringing the Spirit to family prayer. Then I'd drag, pull and bribe everyone to the table to start our work where I'd sit and "encourage" them to stay focused. I never got anything accomplished for me. the house was a mess. I loved spending time with the kids, but I also had things I needed to do. Things had to change.

I've been very good bout making lesson plans a week in advance. It helps me stay sane not to wake up every morning and scramble to assemble my thoughts. So now I post those plans where my kids can see them. I explained to them that they don't need to wait for me to tell them to start their work. Now they know what is expected of them and they can do it when they want, but no privledges until the work is done.

Yesterday it worked really well. They kids were excited to be more in control of their day and I didn't have to coherce anyone to get things accomplished. It took a whole lot longer to get the school work out of the way though. Today, this have gone down hill a bit. I need to find a balance between too much control and none at all. I don't mind directing them, but they need to become self starters to be successful in life. I want to instill that now.

I'd love to hear suggestions if anyone has any. I know only a few people read my blog and only a few of those homeschool, but I would love to hear things that have worked for others in teaching their children to get started on their own. My kids don't get dressed unless I tell them too. They don't to school work unless I tell them too. They don't bathe unless I tell them too. I want them to learn they don't have to be told to do everything.

I have great kids. They are good at so many things. I am so blessed.

Just a little off the bottom

2010-10-09T18:00:00.002-06:00

In our family we like to play the "Chubby, Chubby" game. You know the one that goes, "Hi, I'm Chubby Chubby. My Momma's chubby, blah, blah, blah". My kids get a huge kick out of me trying to smile with my cheeks squeezed together. It's been a while since we've played, but it obviously has made an impression on Kenny's mind.

Today as I stood watching the older boys ride their bikes, Kenny came up behind me and squeezed my other cheeks together and started to say, "Hi, I'm Chubby Chubby." It was hilarious! I, of course, made him stop as soon as he touched me. How embarrassing! Still, that boy cracks me up. Everyday his personality shows more. He is so unique and he makes me laugh everyday.

Burrville Cider Mill

2010-10-09T09:05:00.004-06:00

Joey has a Four day weekend. YAY! This morning I got to sleep in AND woke up to breakfast already made. Sounds like a great start to the day to me.

Yesterday we took a trip south to the Burrville Cider Mill. I had heard mixed reviews on it. "It's so small I wouldn't waste your time on it" vs "It's great we go every year". We decided to chance it. There wasn't much to loose either way, except for time which is never really wasted when you are with your loved ones.

True it is very small. There is only one press and a small sorting room. Behind the building we found this beautiful waterfall. Originally the mill ran on hydropower, but that was a couple hundred years ago.

Inside the small store we found these gems. Pure maple syrup (yummy with a slightly woodsy flavor), pure and fresh apple cider, cider doughnuts, dutch apple jam, and pumpkin butter. These made for a great breakfast...with pancakes i didn't have to make!

Today's agenda includes chilling in front of the TV and/or computer, puttering around the house, and possibly a trip to the Community Center. With the weather changing quickly we try to spend as much time outside as possible. I'm actually surprised at how mild its been. So far the weather doesn't seem too different from New Mexico's.

PS I don't seem to be able to cut and paste. I don't feel like trying to figure it out right now so sorry this is so disjointed.

Rain

2010-10-06T10:05:00.002-06:00

I've found an easy way to tell if the rain we are getting is "regular" rain or "lake effect" rain.

Regular rain makes the earth smell fresh and new.

Lake effect rain makes the earth smell slightly of dead fish.

Taylor's Birthday

2010-10-04T19:49:00.004-06:00

This is what Taylor wanted for his "cake". I explained to him that when I ask him what cake he wanted for his birthday what I really was asking is what dessert he wanted. That opened up all kinds of possibilities for him. He decided on ice cream sandwiches made from Dad's home made chocolate chip cookies. They were huge. I don't think anyone finished what was given to them.

Taylor had a terrible time deciding what he wanted for his birthday. For months he worked himself into tears because he wanted so many things and couldn't pick just one. Not because he thought we were mean for not buying everything for him, nor out of greed, but the choice was too much for him to bare. What he wanted most, he was sure we wouldn't or couldn't get for him. An electric guitar. But we found a shop in town that sells used instruments as well as new. We walked in and Joey helped him try each guitar out so that he could get the one he really wanted. This is what he chose. Everyday he thanks us. He tells me how happy he is with the choice he made. I love it. Next month he will start lessons. And I will let him play as much as he wants...with out the amp.

Autumn in New York

2010-10-04T19:14:00.006-06:00

I couple of weeks ago we decided to take a drive up to the Adirondack Mountains to see the fall colors. The colors were spectacular. I'm a little dissappointed in my pictures. I'm sure now the mountains look like they are exploding. Many of the trees looked like they were on fire. Literally. There is no other way to describe it. We headed out with no destination in mind. We picked a road and drove, and drove until the kids refused to sit any longer. We found this beautiful river. The kids loved climbing all over the rocks in the middle of the water. I think they were just so relieved to be out of the car! Eventually we worked our way to Jreck's Subs. I had a buffalo clam sub...trust me it was good.

We headed home much to the relief of the kids. I could have driven forever and watch all the beauty around me.

Punkin Carving!

2010-10-04T18:44:00.004-06:00

I always forget I have to upload my pictures backwards! Here are the finished products. As if the kids weren't having enough fun with sharp knives already, Joey pulled out the extra large drill bit. Turned out pretty cool.

Always the entertainer! Joey looks like a mideval minstrel or court jester to me. That's my punkin head...

Kenny giving his pumpkin a little kiss. He did most of the work himself after we encouraged him to put down the knife and pick up the sharpie.

Yum...punkin guts!

Lillia was so proud of herself. Her whole arm was swallowed when she reached in to scoop out the goobers.

Most of the fam (and Kenny's head) hard at work. All in all it was good times. Too bad I woke up the next morning and realized I was out of eggs. I couldn't make the pumpkin pie I'd been dreaming of all night.

2010-09-28T10:24:00.002-06:00

Would it be awful if we skipped homeschool today? Don't answer that... its just not going to get done today. At least not all of it.

Joey had a PT test this morning. Oh the stress PT tests cause this family! Joey hasn't passed one since moving here to NY. He believes he has anterior compartment syndrome. Which seems to be pretty common in the military. To make matters worse he's been doing 2 PT sessions everyday (required) because he didn't pass his PT test. Each session includes 5-6 mile runs, hundreds (literally) of burpees, a mile of iron mikes, push ups, sit ups, and whatever else the seargent sees fit to torture them with.

Anyway, any kind of PT that involves his legs causes him a huge amount of pain. Usually he needs pain meds and a soak in an extremely hot bath to take the edge off. Often he has difficulty walking. His legs are also sore to the touch. Not really a great way to spend life. But now that he's passed his test he only has to do one of those PT sessions! YAY! He can go to sick call to take care of his legs too! If he had gone to sick call before passing his PT test and gotten on profile (a doctor's note saying he doesn't have to run) he wouldn't have been allowed to take the test. He would have been stuck on "special pops" (the second PT session) until his profile was up. The profile would run out while he is in Afganistan. Then he'd have to take his PT test there at 5000ft altitude instead of here at 600ft altitude. His passing is a HUGE relief!

My visiting teacher came today. I love when I get visited. Its pretty much my only social time. LOL. She stayed for an hour and a half, which was lots of fun for me, but not very productive for homeschool. Now we've finished lunch. I've set the kids to doing the school work that I am least involved in. After this short blogging break I should feel refreshed enough to actually spend some time teaching them.

Maybe we will get work done today!

2010-09-23T20:37:00.002-06:00

Anybody use Meleleuca? I've heard of the products before, but have never tried them. I want to but don't want the monthly purchase commitment before I have a chance to find out if I like the products or not. There are lots of reviews online but I'd rather here it from some one I know.

A little bit more

2010-09-16T12:53:00.002-06:00

So once again more time has elapsed between posts then I thought would. Time seems to move so fast! I hardly know where my days go. This is a rather stressful time for me.

I chose to home school the kids this year. We've had good days and we've had bad days. Most of the bad days were do to my lack of organizational skills and to the fact that my in general have a phobia/allergy to anything work related. In their minds home schooling was supposes to be one big recess. Actually they have done rather well. Mostly we are doing reviews of work they did last year in public school. I want to make sure they don't have any learning gaps. Reviewing has been pretty easy and things are moving quickly. Hopefully they continue well as I introduce new things to them. The plan was to take lots of field trips and do a lot of hands on things, but Joey has the car most days. The days I have the car, I have to run errands. I am loving having the kids home. Especially when I see the kids in the neighborhood leaving for the bus at 7 am and getting home at 4:30. What a waste of time that bus ride is.

So far the kids have studied, typing, Spanish, English/grammar, penmanship, math, art, music, PE, and history. I still have a couple of books coming in the mail so we should be starting Science here pretty soon. I'm hoping to get on a fairly regular schedule so the kids always know what is expected of them. We scrapped Math for today. The kids did an excellent, excellent job on their work this morning and I'm not feeling into teaching a new concept today. I think they finally are understanding that if they do what I ask right away, then they have much more playtime during the day. I still have high hopes that this is going to be the best thing for us. Even though I hide myself in the bathroom just to have time alone sometimes. Sometimes I need time to think without any outside noises. Kenny loves to sit next to us and do his school work. Lots of cutting, pasting, and coloring for him. He is so proud of his work.

Tuesday Joey got orders to Afghanistan. He will be "in theatre" or on forgein soil before November 1st. I thought mentally I was prepared for this. We've known for a long time that October was when he'd probably leave. Now it seems to close, to real. We've been to briefings to learn all the Army protocol for notifying families of casualties and stuff. We've seen pictures of the building he'll be living in. We've learned about the culture and the weather and the dangers. I'm proud of his decision to serve our country, the greatest country in the world. I'm proud that he is willing to put his life in danger to stand up for what he believes in. I'm proud that he chose to challenge himself. I'm proud to be his wife and be here supporting him. But I'm going to miss him like crazy. Kenny never misses a chance to tell Joey how much he'll be missed when he "..'ploys". I'd rather him go sooner that later though. The younger the kids are the easier they'll handle it.

Our ward here is interesting. We are a military ward, so at any given time approximately half the priesthood holders are deployed. Our Bishop is in Iraq right now. I'm not sure when he'll be back. Our Elders' Quorum Presidency was just reorganized and our high councilman was teasing that in high counsel meeting the Stake President announced that we need a new presidency...like we do every month. LOL. I don't know, we haven't been here that long yet. Here they don't read in the names of new families in Sacrament meeting. That would take up too much time every week. A week or two ago a man I'd never seen before came up to me after Sacrament meeting. He knew my name and situation and was asking how we are doing. I didn't know anyone knew my name. We talked a little bit. Last Sunday I realized he is in the Bishopric. So much of the ward is new at any given time that everyone just assumes whoever they are talking to is new and so no one is very shy. If everyone waited for others to come talk to them no one would talk to anyone. The two people I've talked to the most are planning on moving back home with their families when their husbands deploy in October. So it will be back to the friendship drawing board for me.

The weather is wet and colder now. The kids are excited about the prospects of huge amounts of snow. I think they won't have to wait too much longer for it. I'm ready for lots of hot cocoa and soups. I wouldn't mind hunkering down for the winter. Give me a good book and some hibernation and I'll be all good.

I miss everyone at home. I'm glad I have facebook so at least I read status updates. They don't give a very accurate idea of how everyone is really doing though. I'm going to try to start making phone calls soon. My home phone line will be installed in a few weeks. That will make it easier. I hate feeling out of touch with everyone I care about. I still miss the faces of Edgewood Ward even those who were just acquaintances. I don't want to lose touch. I think of everyone often.

New York!

2010-08-20T13:08:00.003-06:00

Wow there is so much to write! So far we are enjoying New York very much.

We have a house on post and only had to live in a motel for 1 week. That is awesome considering we thought we'd be there for a whole month. Living in the motel was hard but definitely could have been worse. We spent a lot of time driving Joey around since we only have one car now. It gave us something to do. Lilly slept terrible there and still isn't on her regular schedule. Somedays she'll go right to sleep, other day we have a fight on our hands. THe worst part about her not sleeping is Joey and I have zero a lone time. Sigh.

Anyway back to the house. We qualify for a 5 bedroom home but one would become available until Octoberish...right when Joey leaves. We didn't want to get locked into a lease and not be able to move into the house when one was available so we opted to take a smaller, 3 bedroom, home to get us in faster. We were offered a home the same day we got on the 3 bedroom list. Lots of people told us to hold out for the 5 or 4 room list, but we are so happy to be in our own place. So our house is much smaller than the one we moved from, but the more we unpack, the more little nooks and crannies we find to put our stuff in. We seem to be fitting just fine other than the fact that Lilly's "room" really is a large storage closet. We don't plan on telling her this...lol. We also live in a townhouse so we share a wall with the neighbors who happen to be smokers. The smoke has a way of sneaking inti our house as well. Yuck! Our windows are constantly open and that helps a lot.

This past week the weather turned much colder. The leaves are already changing colors. Its beautiful! We have both wild turkey and deer in the neighborhood. The deer will let you get close (20 or so feet) to them. We've counted 12 deer in the herd so far. Or seen that many all at once actually. I love it!

There are tons of things to do here. The closest being our community center which is half a block away. They have a skate park, splash park, BMX track, huge sandbox, outdoor play area, indoor play area, gym, and computer lab. It was my salvation while all of our stuff was still in storage. We literally spent full days there. We've also seen a War of 1812 reenactment and watched pirates take over a local town. Lots of fun and worth their own post!

The kids have friends in the neighborhood and spend most of their time outside. Thank goodness. I have time to unpack in peace.

Joey isn't finding the same kind of camaraderie here that he experienced both in Basic Training and AIT. We are hoping its just because he is new and that he'll be able to integrate well before he deploys. Most people either love it here or hate it. We plan on loving it! We'll see how we feel after the first winter.

Pictures and posts to come!

Taylor's and Larry's Spring pictures

2010-06-24T19:08:00.004-06:00

HaHa HeHe...Taylor is hilarious! Even as a baby we could never get a "natural" looking picture from him. Larry of course is a doll.

We are busy with moving plans. Finally today we started making some progress. Our moving truck is reserved, we have our money advances getting processed, and we bought tickets to NEW MEXICO. We are thrilled to be about to make the trip. Its going to cost more than we wanted, but it will be worth it. Now to get the house packed...yuck. So many little things to take care of. I'd rather do that than pack, but I want to be done with the packing before we leave for NM so we don't have to stress when we get back.

Love you all!

Lilly's first few steps

2010-06-04T20:23:00.002-06:00

I guess it isn't too impressive of a video. She only takes a step or two, but these literally are her very first steps. This was filmed last weekend and now she is up to 5 or 6 steps! Yay! A friend told me to put something in her hands so she feels like she is still holding onto something while she walks. I've never heard that before, but what a great idea. Umm, I haven't tried it yet, thus the slow progress. She will pick herself back up and go again several times in a row though. Now she just wants to run...walking is for babies.

PS I do dress my kids every once in a while. I just have very few vidoes or pictures to prove it!

First time I fixed Lillia's hair

2010-06-04T20:07:00.002-06:00

Lillyann's hair is much longer in the front than it is in the back. Its hilarious. Her bangs keep falling in her eyes and bugging her though so I am trying my hand at ponytails. I've never been a "girly" girl. I hated having my hair done as a little girl and to this day have to have a cut that falls into place with little help from me. When I found out I was pregnant with a girl, besides the obvious joy, I started to wonder if I had the skills to raise a girl. (I was quite a handful I'm often reminded. Thanks Jerry, thanks Jim. Thanks Momma for NEVER mentioning it!) I can't even get myself all dolled up could I do it for my daughter? Thus the experimental ponytail. Straight up if you notice...lol. I'll keep on practicing...

Summer Cuts

2010-05-30T19:32:00.008-06:00

Schools out! Time for summer hair! This is what we came up with this year...

The saw blade...
The ridgeback...
And the Roman helmet...

There is a before and after of Larry. What a cutie. I'm hoping letting them express themselves with crazy hair now will make it less appealling as they get older. When all their friends want mohawks they can say, "been there, done that, over it." Hopefully they won't go more extreme...lol.

Awesome

2010-05-26T10:46:00.002-06:00

Lillyann slept for 11 hours straight last night. She hasn't slept like that since her first week of life! Her average is 3 hours at a time still. I didn't fall asleep after hitting the snooze button this morning! And even though I am still "tired" I don't feel like I'm living in a fog. What an awesome blessing. I think it might have something (or everything) to do with the shots she got yesterday. Five total and another two coming in a month. But I'm holding on to a glimmer of hope that it will continue. Weaning should help. I'm not sure I want to tackle that until after Joey's last test in a couple of weeks. Then of course we will be in the process of moving, so it might be a couple months before I can get good sleep on a regular basis. I'm excited to see the end in sight!

Restless

2010-05-24T18:53:00.002-06:00

The last several weeks I've been restless. The food I eat is good, but not good enough. The family time we spend together is fun, but always seems to be lacking something. I sleep a lot, but it isn't restful. When I'm a lone I want to be with someone, when I'm with someone I want to be alone. SIGH And I'm taking it out on Joey which is not fair to him. I'm trying to control it. It's just not working.

Joey should be getting his orders any day now. I think it is the stress of waiting that's becoming debilitating. We have no idea where we are going or when we are expected to be there. We just know that it is coming. This is the life we chose. I'm trying to fit all this "unknowing" into my very planned out methodical personality. I'm sure I have something to learn from this. I'll get there. It's just going to take a while.

Our good friends the Delks moved this weekend. The boys ran to their house crying when they saw the moving truck. We've spent almost every single day together since moving here. Joey and Delk went to basic together. They slept one bunk apart. Then transfered to the same AIT training facility. They have become family. A second set of parents to our kids. We love and miss them.

I'm amazed at how quickly we formed a bond. I'm not the social "bonding" type. I honestly thought we would move here and I would have few social interactions outside of Sunday meetings. I'm glad Nikki persude the friendship because I know I wouldn't have and I would have missed out. I've been blessed to get to know them. That's just one more thing I've learned in this journey. I'm sure there is much more to come. With out the Delks here, there is nothing emotionally tying us to Alabama. Knowing the end is in sight, I'm just ready to have it done and over with.

Taking one day at a time...maybe tomorrow will be the day.

Talking chins

2010-05-14T19:03:00.002-06:00

Tonight we happened upon video clips of talking chins. The kids loved it and wanted to try. It was so much fun! I learned a lot about what I would do next time. For one TURN UP the music! The kids were singing "Good Ship Lollipop" but you can't hear it in the original video so I put on something else. I was having so much fun that I forgot about dinner. Good thing I put extra water in the noodles and they were just over done and not burned.

Making Donuts!

2010-05-08T21:01:00.002-06:00

This turned out to be an incredibly fun day! First we made then consumed donuts. Then we headed to a park called the Kids Place. I'll save those video for later. I'm sure you've had enough for now. Taco bell for dinner and then movie night at home. Days don't get much more perfect than that one was.

Video of my house

2010-05-08T20:11:00.009-06:00

For those of you who are interested...I know its taken me a while to post this, but since we are leaving in a few months figured it was now or never. Sorry not every room is clean. I usually can get one room clean a day...lol...so you are also seeing how we live. Sorry about that.
Livingroom
Hall/Kitchen

Well it will only post some of the vidoes. I'll post more another time. I know how much you are DYING to see our bedrooms! We love the size and layout of this house! We have been so blessed.

2010-05-08T20:05:00.000-06:00

Just cuz she is so darn cute!

2010-05-08T19:56:00.002-06:00

We went fishing a few weeks back and Kenny caught his own fish. He was so excited!

Early morning calls generally suck

2010-04-16T20:19:00.002-06:00

So I got a call at 6 am. Right after I hit the snooze on my alarm. Not a good way to start the day. A friend called to tell me that a middle school student had been suspended and then threatened to come to school today with ill intentions. He had a hit list and everything. Normally this wouldn't affect me at all, but here in Alabama where the education system couldn't be much more screwed up, our elementary is connected to the middle school. Yup the very same as the crazy suspended kid. She said there would be police and locked doors and other security measures and "was I going to send my kids to school today?" Uh, no, I think not.

I tried to talk to Joey about it so I could get his opinion. He was clearly asleep and mumbled something like, "mumble, mumble, that sounds great..." At least he sounded supportive.

I wasn't very concerned about my kids' physical safety, but I feel that school should feel like a safe place. I didn't want to send my kids there and have them see all the police. Or have them hear all the what ifs. Larry in particular is very sensitive to those things. He already isn't sleeping well at night. I didn't want to fight a terrified first grader to school every morning. And I loved having them home today. We had a great day.

To tell the truth, I'm more afraid about when this kid comes back from his suspension. What if he tries something then, when there are no police or extra security?

ASAP after the phone call I texted a friend to let her know what was going on. Her reply was "but he doesn't go to the elementary". Made me feel really stupid and paranoid. I wonder if she forgot the part about the two schools sharing the same building. Sure the elementary is in one wing and the mid school another, but they are only separated by a cafeteria.

Anyways, I had already decided to home school next year. I think the kids will be happy with that. This just made me more confident in my decision.

Lilly's Blood Specialist

2010-03-24T19:56:00.002-06:00

So we went to see the specialist...Lilly does NOT have spherocytosis. After telling us that Lilly is slightly anemic (on the very slight side) she asked us why else we were there. When we, fully convinced, told her that Lilly had Spherocytosis, she gave us a funny looked and asked us why we would think that. The Specialist seemed a little shocked that our pediatrian told us she did. We were told that our doctor would not only receive a report, but also a phone call. The pediatrian hasn't called us since then. I'm not planning on taking Lilly back until her 12 month check up. Her color still isn't great and she is still very small so I'm going to ask for her heart to be checked. I'm not worried about her the way I was with Taylor though. Her behavior is so normal.

Pinewood Derby

2010-02-25T12:41:00.002-07:00

Taylor took first in our ward's pinewood derby. Yay for him! He did most of the work himself and none of the parts were machined. Larry and Kenny also raced just for fun. The only car that was anywhere near the speed of Taylor's was Larry's. The only race Taylor lost was one against Larry...LOL. I don't think the other parents were very happy, but we were thrilled. We would have been happy for the winner no matter who it was. Hopefully I'll have pictures soon!

Joey starts school

2010-02-25T12:34:00.002-07:00

Yay! Joey starts school on Monday! So the count down begins. T minus 20 weeks. Actually it will be a little more than that. We are hoping to be all moved before the next school year starts. I'm still debating on home schooling or not. I'll have to research the school in whatever area we end up in. Unfortunately Joey got stuck with night classes. Neither of us are looking forward to that. He will only see Taylor and Larry on the weekends because their schedules will be COMPLETELY opp0site. We can do anything for 20 weeks and maybe Joey will be able to make it to Lilly's doctor appointments now. When we get to our new station things should settle down. Joey should start working a normal 9-5 schedule and we can be as normal as is possible for our family.

Love you all and Miss you!

Short update

2010-02-20T10:20:00.002-07:00

Time seems to move swifter with each day. I'm not sure where it goes. My house is still a mess, I don't have a calling, nor hobbies, I'm really not on the computer much these days and I feel like my kids are not getting the attention they need. But I feel constantly busy and in a hurry.

Taylor and LARRY now have new glasses.

Lilly has a condition known as spherocytosis. Basically her red blood cells are too round and have a hard time fitting in tighter places in the body. This beats them up a bit and they have a shorter life span than other red blood cells. We have a meeting with a specialist in a few weeks and will find out more. There is a wide scale of severity and we have no idea where she falls on that scale.

Chuck (what a lifesaver!) is in the process of renting out our house to the CC sister missionaries. Yesterday he showed it to the Mission Office reps who made a recommendation to Salt Lake. We will hear in a few weeks whether or not our house was acceptable.

We have made some major purchases that will make our present house feel more like a home. After our living room set arrives I will finally hang pictures on the wall and our move in will be complete. Only 3 weeks to wait.

Kenny is not having seizures (YAY) he is have breath holding spells. When he is startled or afraid he involuntarily holds his breath until he passes out making jerking movements in the process. He should grow out of it fairly soon. Most kids do around 3-4 years of age.

Lilly is crawling!

Joey should be starting class in the next few weeks. Thank goodness. We were excited for him to be inactive because we thought he would be home more, but instead he had to sit around the office like a bump on a log for 9 hours a day. What a waste! Now in March he is supposed to move companies and we are hoping he will get a little more freedom afterward. After he starts classes we can kinda have an idea how much longer we will be here. Even planning 6 months in advance would be a blessing!

Living on Post

2010-02-14T10:17:00.002-07:00

has become a challenge for us. Just another little bit of freedom we seem to have given up. Today we woke up to snow. A whole whopping 1/2 inch. Sigh. If we lived off post it would be no big deal. Wonderful even. Yay for snow. But we do live on post. A post that has closed its gates for much less worrisome weather. So the question this morning was "do we go to church and risk not being able to come home, or do we stay home when we really want to be at church?" In the end we stayed home. We haven't left the house so we don't know if post is closed or not.

We are not part time members and I have no intention of becoming one. All the experienced army wives I've talked to say this is the worst post they've lived on. We are debate on if we would ever live on post again. If they are all like this one that's a big negative! But if most are better than this maybe we would consider it again.

We miss owning our own place and doing what we want.

Miss Lillyann

2010-01-28T09:47:00.002-07:00

Just a quick update. We still don't know much yet. Lilly's first round of blood test came back abnormal. We are waiting for the results of her second set of tests. So far we know that her liver is leaking enzyms into her blood stream and that her red blood count is low. It must not be too, too serious because they didn't rush her to the hospital and there doesn't seem to be a rush on her test results. We do have her on vitamins. Yuck. And I have to try and supplement my nursing with formula, but anyone who's ever tried to give her a bottle before knows how well that is going (not very). I give it to her in a sippy cup. She seems to like the feel of it in her mouth but instead of swallowing she spits it out all down her chin..lol..silly girl. Somedays she eats jars of baby food well. Somedays I have to pin her down and shove it in her mouth when she opens wide to scream. We've got to get some nutrients in her is mostly what the doctors are saying now. She still only weighs 12 lbs. She is meeting all of her developemently milestones though. I'm waiting for the doctor to tell me to start worrying. Until then I'm just doing the best I can and loving her every single minute!

Our house

2010-01-28T09:23:00.004-07:00

is a very, very, very fine house. Unfortunately, I only have picture of the outside for now. My camera broke right after I got here and I was waiting to make the house "my own" before taking pictures of the inside. Now I'm trying to figure out how to take still pics with my Flip. This is what it looked like before the tornado. I have men on my roof as we speak banging and clanging to get it back to this state. I can't wait until spring when the grass will be green! We've definitely had enough rain for that. I'd like to paint. Right now everything is so white it doesn't feel like me at all.

It looks like we will be here at least until August. Joey is currently "inactive" which means he isn't in class. There aren't enough instructors to keep the class going all the time so he has to wait until the next class opens up. That will probably be March. Then we have 20 weeks of school after that. I have no idea if we will get transferred right away or if it will be a few months. We were hoping he could spend his days at home while on inactive status, but instead he gets to sit in a big room with lots of other inactives waiting for the sergeant to need someone to run errands for him. Not fun. Another soldier tried to steal some stuff and is now in jail. All inactives have to take turns "watching" him. That doesn't sound like fun either.

The sun came out for a few hours yesterday and it was warm enough to take the kids to the park. It was glorious! I met a few other moms on my street. Yay for having people to talk to. I have another friend I spend quite a bit of time with too. We trade babysitting and hang out a lot. What a life saver she has been!

Initial thoughts on Alabama/Military

2010-01-20T20:52:00.002-07:00

Sweet Home Alabamie has:

1) huge spiders
2) rain without lightening
3) a wonderful, big house
4) four parks within walking distance
5) everything under the sun to do sans motorcycle accommodations
6) rains everyday (so we haven't tried out those great parks)
7) roads that change names every mile or so
8) everything at my fingertips

Ah Military life:

1) is worth being close to Joey
2) I miss freedom to plan a future
3) living with covenants on the home doesn't work well for my family
4) keeps me busy (conferences, classes, etc)
5) people are friendly and ready to help

I don't have any pictures of the house. My camera broke the first week I was here. I'll try to get something up tomorrow. Things are going well. For the most part we are happy here. The kids seem to finally be adjusting in school. Hopefully soon they will have friends. I like our new ward. The people seem friendly. I know it is hard for some people (like me) to open up and welcome new comers. Maybe I'll be better at it after this experience. We finally broke down and bought a temporary couch from a thrift store. I should have just brought what we had in Edgewood. It was nicer than what we have now, but hopefully with tax returns we can get what we really want. I wish someone could come visit. We feel so far away from everyone we love. We took out a few pictures to show to our friends tonight. I found myself looking at the house in the background more than the people in the photos. I love my house and want to show it to someone I know well. We have friends that live right up the road. Its been nice to hang out with them. Joey is already talking about leaving in a few months. It is making it hard to feel permanent here. I was starting to. It was starting to feel like home, but now it feels like a rest stop and I'm second guessing unpacking all my stuff. We have at least six more months here. We are still working on getting Lilly to grow. Yesterday they did some blood work, but we don't have any results yet. Kenny's EEG looked normal. They say his seizures are "situational". Sorry this is so jumbled. This is how my brain works now a days. Maybe I'll write more coherent tomorrow. Goodnight for now...

Its so hard to say goodbye

2009-08-03T21:30:00.003-06:00

in more ways than one.

Yesterday was Joey's last day at home. Possibly forever (this home at least). We went to church where we bore rather incoherent testimonies. This ward has helped us in more ways then we can describe. The people of Edgewood Ward are amazing and that is why I decided to stay here instead of move with Joey.

After sacrament meeting, Joey and I found a ride for the kids then came home with the intention of finishing the last few things around the house Joey had on his "to do" list. Instead, we ended up sitting on the couch together not talking about anything in particular. The boys came home and Joey put them to work doing the things we had come home early to do.

Before we left for the hotel, Joey gave each of the boys blessings. Each time the kids receive blessings from Joey our family grows closer together. I am so thankful for the Priesthood. I already miss having it in my home. Joey and I were able to have blessings also. It is amazing how much they have helped. Normally when Joey is gone I am terrified at night, but I haven't been this time.

We got to the hotel about 5ish. The Hyatt is a very fancy, child unfriendly place. I was stressed out the whole time we were there. We brought the kids in their swimsuits so they could swim with Joey for the last time. Of course the pool was too deep for Kenny and I was paranoid about him jumping in. That kid is so fearless. He did try to jump several times.

Finally I couldn't take the pool any more. The Army gave Joey a meal ticket so the kids and I stayed to eat with him. The kids crawled all over, under, and around the tables making conversation with who ever happened to be sitting at them. We decided the kids and the hotel needed some time a part and headed to the airplane viewing area near the airport. That was fun. We watched the planes taxi in and out, then take off and land. One plane was so close we were blasted by the exhaust.

Eventually we had to head back to the hotel. Saying good bye was hard. Joey doesn't cry often, but had several times already yesterday. I hated watching him walk in the doors by himself.

On the way home Lilly started to cry...hard. She cried all the way from the airport to Zuzax where I realized I had Joey's wallet and had to turn around and go back. I had to let her cry all the way back to the hotel because military "quite time" was about to start. I had to get his wallet to him first or he wouldn't be able to get it. Back at the hotel I was able to hold her and calm her down. We said another tearful good bye and I headed home again. It wasn't five minutes into the drive that Lilly started to cry again. She cried all the way to Zuzax one more time. I felt so awful. Every once in a while Kenny just couldn't handle the noise any more and started to wail himself.

Finally I got the kids home and in bed. Sigh of relief. And I wasn't even scared to go to bed myself.

This morning Joey called to tell us he was allowed to have visitors to send him off at the airport. Again with out much time to spare we headed to the airport. Lilly was quite this time. YEAH! Joey met us at the gate and we spent another hour or so together. For the third time we said good bye and watched Joey go through doors where we couldn't follow him.

The boys wanted to look at the model airplane displays. Then going down the escalator Larry lost a flip flop. He sat down to put it back on. Kenny followed suit and sat down. Before I could use my free hand to get him back up, his shirt got stuck at the bottom where the stairs go back under. Nice. My 3 year old was stuck at the bottom of a crowded escalator. People started piling up behind him, being thrown into each other. It didn't take me long to realize his shirt was not going to unhook so I tore him free.

Joey called to say his plane would be the next down the runway. We hurried to get back to the car and over to the viewing area. We waited and waited and waited for the plane. Finally after 30 minutes we watched him fly away.

Last time I talked to him he was on a bus 45 minutes outside of Fort Sill where he will spend the next 9-10 weeks. We won't be able to talk for 2-3 of those weeks. We ARE going to make it through this. I'm just not sure how.

Miss Lillyann

2009-06-29T21:08:00.005-06:00

Lillyann was born smiling. She was only two days old when she smiled her first real smile. She loves to listen to the boys playing and the noise actually calms her down sometimes. Going outside for a short walk instantly calms her too. We may have a little nature lover!

We were able to bless Lilly last Sunday. Here are a few lovely (I'm not bias) pictures.

Lillyann Lucielle DeBuck

2009-05-16T21:48:00.003-06:00

Here are some pictures of our new baby girl! We are both doing really well. Labor and delivery went quickly. I'll spare you the details (unless you really want them). She was born at 1:39 am, May 15, 2009. Weighed 5 lbs 10.4 oz, 19 inches long.
Mom, put the camera down! I'm freezing!
Seriously? Is that what you think?
Look at how my Daddy glows when he looks at me!

2009-05-13T23:39:00.002-06:00

Posting should get more regular at least for a little while. I just uploaded a bunch of pictures, so writing the commentary should be pretty easy (when I get around to it).

Bowling

2009-05-13T23:22:00.007-06:00

For Joey's birthday we went bowling and then out for ice cream. It was the first time the boys had been bowling. They loved it!
Larry is trying to smile...
Taylor didn't want to use the aim rack. He actually did a pretty good job. The lane only has a few more dents in it. I'm thinking he must have taken bowling lessons from Travis!

Kenny had so much fun watching the ball roll down the lane. Sometimes he won't use the aim rack and the ball would roll super slow down lane. It was too funny.
Joey of course won our game, but I got a few strikes!

Not sure whats going on here. Haha, my silly boy.

PS anyone know why I can't take the underline off my first sentence?

kenny's red boots

2009-05-13T23:20:00.006-06:00

Boots, those boots, those RED boots!

Kenny got these boots from Rachel. He loves them and wears them everywhere. To the swimming pool, the grocery store, sometimes even with out anything else on. I think he looks like some kinda super hero in these pictures. So cute with his red undies and red boots. All he needs now is a cape. Dunt duh duh dum! "Super Potty Trained Boy! Banishing diapers where ever he goes!"

We also call them his galoshes. Which leads in to this...

painting rooms in Edgewood

2009-05-13T23:15:00.008-06:00

I guess I didn't take any before pictures. This is the bathroom. Let me describe the before for you. Close your eyes...go on now don't make me wait...Now think of a bottle of Pepto Bismal poured all over the walls slowly drizzling until all is covered. You know Pepto, "the only one that coats is the only thing you need." The walls are now well coated...now imagine the door closed. How exactly do you feel now? Ya me too. That's why we painted. This blue is beautiful and so calming. I love it!
This is the before/during of the boys play room.

The Sisters painting the boy's Spiderman room. It turned out great. Unfortunately, we had to repaint only 2 months later. We could have never gotten done what had to get done without everyone's help! Thanks!

paint water

2009-05-13T23:13:00.004-06:00

"Kenny were you drinking the paint water?"

"No"

"What's on your mouth?"

"I'm painting"

"Um hum"

Elders and Kenny Mud (Edgewood)

2009-05-13T23:07:00.005-06:00

While the Elders mudded the play room they also mudded my child. Kenny didn't seem to mind too much. I'm thinking Kenny may have even won that fight.

Elephant Butte

2009-05-13T22:50:00.009-06:00

In April we took a little family trip to Elephant butte. We had so. much. fun! Joey had invited several other guys to go, but they all canceled at the last minute. He had promised the kids he would take them and didn't want to go back on his word. He didn't want to take them alone though so I told him I would go (even though it was the end of April and technically I could have gone into labor at any minute.) I thought the water would be too cold and didn't bring swimsuits. Turns out all the kids wanted to do was play on the beach and in the water.

Taylor tore it up every time he got a chance to drive. In this picture he is driving 50-60 mile per hour. Crazy kid. The boat worked perfectly. We explored all over. I liked to see how many different kinds of birds there were. It was also fun to watch the fish finder and see what was floating under and around the boat.

Da Boys.
Larry is hiding behind the cooler in the boat trying to keep out of the wind.

I'm not sure what they were looking at but it must have beeen important.

We had a pretty secluded area of beach. The sand was wonderful. The lake was smooth as glass. The tent kept us toasty warm. I slept surprisingly well for as pregnant as I was.

We went to one bait shop that had fish heads hanging all over the fence. They fascinated the kids. Mostly because of this. I didn't take a picture. They were nasty.

Tea Party

2009-05-13T22:31:00.004-06:00

At the end of last school year, Larry's class held a Mothers' Day tea party. I was so close to my due date that I wasn't sure if I'd be able to make it. Thank goodness I did. It was adorable. The kids sang songs about mothers, then served us our "tea" (water with fresh lemons and sugar cubes). They remembered to ask politely "one cube or two" and served us a dessert that was very much like cherry pie cake. Irresistable! I love evey minute I get to spend with my four little people.

When I look down

2009-05-13T22:06:00.003-06:00

This is what I see. Its ok. I don't mind. You can look away. Or say, "eewww". Or wretch. I understand. I can only guarantee that in a few days (or less) it will look infinitely worse.

But I am so excited to have this little girl in my arms. It would all be worth it even if my belly never looks like my pre-pregnant one again.

Thanks for all the support

2009-04-04T18:09:00.002-06:00

I feel much better today. I just needed some time to process. I'm grateful for supportive friends and family. Now that this is a reality the only thing left I can do is prepare the best I can. Its hard for me not to be in control. I'm not spontaneous. Not being able to plan more than a month or so in advance, I've decided to take it one day at a time and prepare as if we were going with Joey. Then if not, at least I'll have a renovated home and a whole lot of clutter out of the way. Not going would save us a lot of money. I'm not sure if that is worth being a part for at least a year.

Last Sunday in testimony meeting, a young woman (who's father works in another country and is rarely home) bore her testimony that she knows families can be together forever. She said Heavenly Father wouldn't expect her family to be a part now if there wasn't eternity to be enjoyed together. That really touched me. I know she had no idea what our situation was.

Conference today seemed to be catered to me. I'm in awe at the inspiration of our church leaders. There can be peace and happiness in times of trial. I know that, I just needed a little time for a break down. Things aren't going to be easy, but they will be doable.

Its Official

2009-04-03T09:37:00.002-06:00

Joey is now property of the US Government...

I'm still not sure exactly how I feel about it. I do know that every time I think about him in the Army I get sick to my stomach and start to cry.

There are so many benefits that I look forward to: sign on bonuses, free health care, paid schooling, paid housing, etc. This is just a huge change to how we thought we'd be spending the rest of our lives three weeks ago. I'm having a hard time making the mental shift. I honestly thought Joey would retire from Sandia and that we would live in Edgewood forever. Now we'll be moving at least every three years... The adventure part is exciting. I can adapt to new things rather quickly, but I worry about the kids. How is it going to affect them to move to new schools so often? Are they going to withdraw or become more social and make friends easier? How is it going to affect them to have Joey gone so much? Right now I'm just trying to have faith that there is a plan and that everything will work out in the end. This might end up being the best thing that has ever happened to us...

Joey leaves for basic training August 3. He'll be in Oklahoma for that. Then he'll go to Alabama for the next 48 weeks. We are going to try and see if the kids and I can move there with him. Some captains say its ok, some don't. I'm not used to our living situation being up in the air like that. I might be here, or there, or somewhere completely different. I hate not being able to plan. At least he'll be here for a few months after the baby is born. I insisted on that.

Now we wait and see.

Get Your Kicks...

2009-03-08T16:29:00.002-06:00

Here are a few pictures I took for our Blue and Gold Banquet. The theme was Route 66. I was in charge of the decorations. I thought taking my own pictures and having them developed would be a cheap way to decorate. 8x10s are much more expensive than I thought they were.

I had so much fun taking (and altering) these pictures. Except for the Route 66 Diner, all of these places are found on my own little stretch of Route 66. I started at Mountain Valley Road and drove through Moriarty. Who knew there were so many great things to see?

Anything look familiar?

We ate sloppy joes, thinking it would be easier than hamburgers. For dessert we set up an ice cream bar. The kids loved that!

The Blue and Gold ended up being a wonderful night. I also made a poster that said "Get Your Kicks and Route 66." I decorated with old records that I bought at Bethel. For the center pieces, I put a record in the middle of each table. Then I put an old fashioned popcorn bag on each record and filled them to over flowing. I wish I had other pictures of the night so you could see the room decorated.

A guest speaker from the New Mexico Route 66 Association came and handed out t-shirts to the kids. Taylor loves his! He's worn it at least 3 times a week since he got it.

The Indian is one of my favorite pictures. The mural has been here as long as I can remember. I used to look for it specifically EVERY time we drove past. I had a hard time deciding whether to highlight the Indian or the star. I'm glad I chose the Indian.

I also love this one. It didn't turn out so light when printed.

Anyway, hope you enjoyed looking at them as much as I enjoyed taking them. Photography is a completely new thing for me.

The votes are in...

2009-02-06T10:39:00.002-07:00

Yesterday the hiring committee had their meeting. Joey found out today, they voted to graduate him (finally), but stale mated on whether to hire or not. So stupid! So now the decision to hire or not rests in the hands of the next level of management up. Joey has no idea what that manager is going to do. The good news is he's going to get his journeyman card. The bad news, he doesn't feel well trained enough or qualified enough to advertise himself as a journeyman if he had to look for another job. *Sigh*

At least he is a union member. The union is going to work hard to keep him at Sandia even if it isn't in the machine shop. A woman was hired there last year just because she is woman, not because she was good at the job. If Joey doesn't get hired, the union is talking about a reverse discrimination law suit. I hate politics...The man has worked hard for 6 years in a 4 year program. That is a lot of time not only for him to have invested, but for the company to invest in him. Hire him already! There are plenty of other departments that WANT him if you don't!

The Kid

2009-02-05T15:28:00.004-07:00

We (I) are trying to potty train the kid. I have no problem letting him run around naked right now. If he doesn't have anything on, he doesn't have accidents. Go him! On a down note it also leaves him unlimited access to "himself".

Today I noticed he had a firm grip and he was making funny faces, his head moving a little. Concerned I asked him what he was doing.

He said, "I'm singing. To my penis." and proceeded to sing, "Pee, pee, pee, pee, pee..."

Pinewood Derby

2009-02-02T20:07:00.005-07:00

Taylor competed in his first pinewood derby this last month. He had a blast and placed 4th in his division. It was a lot of fun watching Joey and him work so hard together. It pleased me how much he was able to do by himself if Joey showed him how. Taylor chose to make his car a truck carrying motorcycles in the bed. Anyone surprised about that? It turned out very realistic looking.
Yep, that is the same track I remember Jerry running his car on many, many years ago. It still has the same rough spot where two pieces of the track are screwed together. The right lane is still faster than the left.
Long after the racing was over Taylor and Larry were busy running their cars down the track over and over and over. In fact Larry ran his one last time while the track was being torn apart.

The blue car in this picture belong to Jakob. He won 1st in their division.

Next year Joey is planning on making his own car. He had so much fun with design and fabrication of this one.

All gone!

2009-02-01T13:33:00.004-07:00

Larry lost his very first tooth today! It became very loose yesterday after eating an apple. Taylor's teeth didn't start coming out until well after he was 6. Larry is ecstatic that he can now add his name to the "Lost a Tooth" chart at school. Thank goodness it came out pretty easy!
When I asked Larry how he feels about loosing his tooth he said,"It makes me feel a lot, lot, lot happy!"

He called all of his friends and family in the area to tell them all about it.

Time to blog

2009-02-01T13:27:00.002-07:00

I'm such a slacker...I know. Blogging is something I really enjoy doing, I've just been so busy! Well I've had a cold for the last few days and couldn't go to church today. My goal is to get some blogging done. Maybe even try to do one or two posts a day. Wish me luck!

An update on the last 13 weeks

2008-11-07T13:38:00.003-07:00

I am13 weeks pregnant. This pregnancy has been quite different than the other three. So might say that is an indication that we are having a girl this time. I don't know. We will find out the sex the week of Christmas. We're excited for that extra little gift we will be receiving. We of course would love to have a girl! I think I could be equally as happy with another boy. Having another boy would be very convenient. I wouldn't have to buy new clothes or accessories. He could sleep in the same room with his brothers. A girl would be a totally new experience for me. Would I know how to play girls games? Could I be talented enough with hair design that she would be decent for public? I'd love to find out!

I've had two ultra sounds already. In week 10 I had some significant bleeding. We thought we (I) had miscarried or was in the process of it. It was very scary. I started bleeding in the evening and my doctor told me going to the ER wouldn't do any good. I received a blessing that "this would be a learning experience." Which didn't help me feel better about losing the baby. I stayed home and rested. In the morning, the bleeding had stopped and an emergency ultrasound was scheduled. Joey and I were thrilled to see the little bugger floating around in there and felt even better when we heard a good strong heartbeat. The baby was fine and everything (on the baby) looked normal. I had bled because the placenta had started to detach. That was another shocker...if the bleeding hadn't resolved on its own, I very easily could have hemorrhaged and I live an hour from the hospital. Thank goodness this was only a learning experience!

Here is a picture from the first ultra sound. If you look to the right top, the big black blob is the bleed area.

Ultrasound #2 was a follow up for #1. Baby is great, the bleed area is clearing up, and a lump they thought they found in my uterus is no longer there. I've had a couple more episodes of minor bleeding since then, but nothing I'm worried about. Who knew bleeding was so common in pregnancy? This is my fourth baby and the first time its happened.

In this picture its face is turned toward the camera and its arm is over its nose.

So anyway that was our little drama. Hopefully it is over with.

PS my due date is May 14. As much as I love you, Jim, I'm going to do my darnedest not to have it on the 13. I think every baby should have its own day. Therefore I will try not to have it on May 1, 4, 13, 14, 27 nor the 28. That leaves me plenty of days to push it out. What do you think?

Time to bite the bullet...

2008-11-07T13:26:00.003-07:00

It's a bit early but I decided to pull out those good old maternity clothes...yep for those who didn't know: I AM PREGO! and thrilled about it. Well thrilled about having a baby anyway.

So I pulled out the clothes, but I can't bring myself to try them on yet. I still fit (snuggly) in my regular clothes. I don't think I'll fit the baby clothes yet. I'm right at that awkward nothings going to fit me right stage. I'll give it a few more weeks...or until I can't button my pants anymore.

Sorry clothes. Back into the closet you go!

I've been sick and looking at the computer makes it 100 times worse. I actually feel great today, just a bit tired. Ok really tired! If the good feelings continue maybe I'll get some more blogging done. Yippee!

Should I Be Freaked Out

2008-10-30T10:44:00.002-06:00

That for the last 2 weeks Larry has had a recurring dream about me dying? It kinda is freaking me out! Sometimes in the middle of the night he comes to our room and throws himself across me honestly believing that I am already dead. In last nights dream I didn't die. I just walk off into a field and never came back. Bad enough...

What do I do?

2008-10-21T09:24:00.001-06:00

I'm not quite sure what my son ate, but this morning he had the sparkliest poop I've ever seen!

Larry's first day of Soccer

2008-10-07T12:29:00.003-06:00

Larry has been asking to play soccer for a few years now. Somehow I always managed to miss the registration day. So I promised him and myself that I would make it a priority this season. I did it!

Larry loves it! This is the first thing that has been all his own. No one else in the family is playing, so when we go to soccer it is all for Larry. A few weeks ago Joey was even able to go. It turned out to be quite a family affair. We all had a wonderful time.

He's scored a few goals and feels wonderful about them. We are still working on the teamwork aspect of the sport, but he'll get it eventually. I think we'll skip Spring season. I hear it gets pretty cold and rainy.

Just a bit Hillbilly

2008-10-07T12:12:00.003-06:00

We've always talked about putting in a sandbox. Just never quite got around to doing it. This is how my children compensate...

They've filled an old tire (in abundance here) with soft sand and take turns sitting in it.

This is Kenny's new favorite place to play. If he suddenly disappears I know to look here first. Luckily it is right up against the house and not out in the middle of no where. He's content to drive his cars around and around his "track".

They still haven't figured out that the dump truck doesn't fit. Whatever makes them happy.

Short on Cash

2008-10-03T11:33:00.002-06:00

The boys' school has a student store. They sell school supplies and I'm guessing some of them have the school logo on them. Well this morning Taylor tells me he loves their pencils that sell for $1. That better be one FABULOUS pencil for me to pay a dollar for it. Taylor apparently wants one really bad. Larry, who has acquired some coins recently, offered them to Taylor. What a sweetie! So the two trotted into the living room to count out the coins. There wasn't enough money. Taylor came into the kitchen and flopped himself down in a chair dejectedly. I was about to give him the now lets see if you can come up with ideas of how to make money lecture. We've all had it. We've all given it. Before I started he looked up at me with a look that said it won't be pleasant but it might be the easiest and sighs, "Why don't you just take me to Uncle Peter (who is a dentist) and have him pull a tooth out. Then I'll have TWO dollars."

I cracked up! Out of all the things he could have thought to do! The most appropriate thing to him involved surgically removing a part of his body! Fortunately, he does have a tooth that needs pulled, so I'm not as worried as I might have been if he came up with this idea out of the blue.

Gas me up, pull it out, and fork over the money...

Adventures in Babysitting

2008-10-03T10:16:00.002-06:00

Last night I went to a Stake training meeting. Even though getting out the door to go to one more meeting is becoming a drudgery, once I'm there I'm glad I've gone and learn something worthwhile.

After the meeting was over I had this conversation with President Payne:

President Payne shaking my hand: "Make sure and tell Joey thank you for babysitting."
Me thinking: Why would Joey babysit for the Paynes?
Me: "Babysit? When did Joey babysit?"
President Payne: "You know, tonight so that you could come to our meeting."

Ah ha! I get it. When I'm home alone with the kids I'm parenting, mothering if you will. When Joey is home alone with the kids he is babysitting and there for deserves to be praised. I didn't hear him tell Jerry to go home and thank Jenn. Very interesting. It might work that way in some homes, but thankfully not in mine.

Joey is wonderful about keeping the kids. It doesn't matter if I go out with the girls several weekends in a row or if my calling takes me away from home more often than I'd like. Joey has NEVER complained about keeping the kids. I am so thankful for his support in anything I want to do. Hopefully I express that appreciation enough to him. I love the fact that he does it because he loves to be with the kids and not just because he knows I need a break. Often times he has plans to hang out with a friend and before I know it he loads all the kids up to go with him. What a blessing it is to see my husband (who never wanted to have kids) enjoy our family.

Just can't help myself

2008-09-17T21:25:00.003-06:00

There is a new family in the ward. They seem nice enough. Tonight while dropping the kids off for Cub Scouts, I pulled into the parking lot right after the father. He looked over and gave me a friendly smile. Wanting to be nice I tried to smile back. Unfortunately, I was singing to the radio and unwilling to stop gave him a cross between my best rock star face and a sincere smile. I do believe I looked a bit like this:

I realized my mistake and attempted to wave. As I raised my hand I just couldn't help bustin' a move. Poor guy! I'm sure he felt more frightened than welcomed. Why must I be a slave to music?

The worst pick up line ever

2008-09-09T11:32:00.002-06:00

"Hey, are you Amish?"
"Um, no..."
"Well, now that I've broken the ice, blah, blah, blah..."

No, I'm not kidding! He really thought he was going to get somewhere with that one. No wonder bars are such depressing places.

Taylor's first day of school

2008-08-26T12:01:00.004-06:00

Here are pictures of Taylor's first day of school. He didn't need me there at all. He thinks he's too grown up for mommy. Not really, he loves me. Its just time for me to let him explore a bit more on his own. He wants to walk home from the bus with out me. My mom let us walk alone and didn't constantly check on us. I get scared though. Those are my babies. I would be devastated if anything happened too them.

This is his teacher Ms. Plante. They seem to get a long well. Taylor is doing very well with switching schools. He's academic performance is still below grade level. I'm hoping with his new glasses and the blessing Joey gave him, that he won't have any problem catching up. At the same time, going over his homework with him last night, I saw that what he is working on now is about the same as what he was doing for Kindergarten at Family School. There is a good chance that he isn't below grade level at all and only tests bad. That whole performance anxiety thing he (and all of us) have going on. At Family School he had words like Pueblo and Anasazi on his spelling (in Kindergarten) here he is spelling hide and side and slide. His teacher was very surprised that he writes in cursive already. I hope they allow him to continue. I think putting him back in regular school will help fill in the gaps that he had from Family School. I just hope they don't hold him back in the places he excelled in at Family School.

Larry's First Day of Kindergarten

2008-08-26T11:13:00.004-06:00

Larry went to school for the first time yesterday. He was very excited and sat well at his table. I did catch a glimpse of the deer in the headlights looks as I walked out the door. At least I knew he still felt like he kinda needed me.

I LOVE this picture! I didn't pose them at all. Actually, I was trying to take a picture of Larry by himself and the other two stepped in at the last minute.

The boys both picked the exact same Batman backpack this year. I wouldn't let Larry wear it until yesterday. He felt so big!

Riding the bus was the other highlight of the day. The driver is very sweet. Both kids are upset that I don't let them ride in the morning. Really, there is no way I'm going to put my kids on the bus before 8 am when I can leave my house at 8:45 and still get them there myself before the bell rings. But they are welcome to ride the bus 45 minutes home if it pleases them.

Over all Larry only had one hiccup in his day. Before loading the bus to come home, they had to wait in line for something and it started to rain. He cried because he hates being in the rain. I got the story from Taylor. I hope he only whined and didn't have a full blown fit. I know what that boy is capable of. He still got a "gumball" (round sticker) in his "gumball machine"(xerox copy). That's the reward system his teacher set up, so he must not have been too bad.

Entertainment books

2008-08-26T11:06:00.002-06:00

My kids are selling entertainment books as a school fund raiser. They both are supposed to sell two of them. Anyone interested? I'll be buying one, because they cost $35 and there is $30 worth of Smith's new bonus checks in there. By the time I spend those, I've only paid $5 for the rest of the coupons in the book.

Also if anyone out of state is interested, we can order one specific to your area online.

You can preview the book here.

Chuck Wagon

2008-08-25T21:48:00.005-06:00

Saturday night after the adventures at Wild Life West, DeNae invited Joey and I to the Chuck Wagon dinner and entertainment also at Wild Life West. I had so much fun. The band, Swing Riders, were hilarious. I loved that every time I spontaneously burst into song DeNae was right there singing along with me. I feel like I can totally be myself with her even though we were surrounded by strangers. Joey and Raul were slightly embarrassed (after so many years of marriage they've learned to roll there eyes and pretend they don't know us) by our cowgirl whoops and hollers and quietly retreated into a portable game.

Afterwards we apologized to the people sitting next to us. They reassured us that we were the life of the party. GO US!

Seriously, you'd think we'd been drinking. Nothing like be high on life and great relationships.

Girls' Night Out

2008-08-25T20:51:00.005-06:00

Friday night we had a girls' night out. I needed it so badly! We were celebrating the birthdays of some friends and spent the evening eating yummy food (see below) and giving each other the spa treatment.

I fully offered myself as a guinea pig as I don't know much about make-up.

Andrea didn't disappoint.

I had so much fun sitting back and having someone else make me beautiful. Thanks Andrea!

The finished product.

Its hard taking decent pictures of yourself at 1 am, in the car.

Anyway, I had a great time. Thanks girls!

Run, Rally, Rock (length advisory)

2008-08-23T16:59:00.013-06:00

Today was the annual Run, Rally, Rock Festival. This day is a celebration of Edgewood. Yeah, I know...Woohoo, Edgewood! Every year they have a 5K run. On Sunday. A few of us are going to try to get them to move it to Saturday. Wish us luck!

They had a parade this year for the first time. I just found out about it yesterday, but the kids wanted to go. Of course we went, come on its Edgewood! I had the bright idea of having the kids ride their bikes there and I would run pushing Kenny in the stroller. The kids loved going for a long ride and I walked when I needed to. Two and a half miles later we were on 344 waiting for the parade to begin.

I didn't have much hope of being impressed by a parade put on by Edgewood. To my surprise, I loved the parade! Here are the highlights:

These are our scouts riding in "Dumpy".

Who rides steer? I guess he does...

'40s Chevy ...(oh goodness, I don't remember what he told me. I made him stop the parade just so that I could get the details and relay them back to Joey. Alas, I have failed!)

Some kinda cool looking tractor. I was very impressed.

Nice truck
The was a huge dump truck. I've seen them before, but I never get over my awe of them.

Camaro, just can't pass one up.

This picture speaks for itself.

After the parade I decided to take the kids to Wildlife West where the real party was goin' on. I wasn't planning on staying long because it only takes an hour or so to see the animals.

The kids found a rock wall though. All of them wanted to go up. There was a height restriction though.
Daniel and Taylor in their duds.

Again. They're just so darn cute.

Taylor shot up the wall with very little effort. He never ceases to amaze me. I watch lots of older kids try to make it to the top and he was the only one the whole time we were there that made it. We ended up being there quite a while.
Turns out that going up is easier than coming down. All he had to do was jump off and the rope would catch him. He just didn't want to do it.

30 minutes and two rescue teams later, a man on the ground offered to go up and let Taylor piggie back down. Great idea right?

Not really. The rope is made to let you down according to weight. Taylor was so much lighter that the rope was trying to break his fall. At the same time the other guys rope was trying to let him fall according to his heavier weight. Taylor ended up being pried away and was hanging all the weight of his body on his tummy instead of his bum. It hurt for a while but he was glad to be down. Everyone else was glad he was down too.

I told him how proud I was that not only did he try the wall, he succeeded in making it to the top. His rescuer told me that even he had a hard time jumping at the top, and he rationally knew that the rope would keep him safe.

Relief!

2008-08-19T12:21:00.004-06:00

In light of this visit, I changed Taylor's eye doctor. Our first trip to the new doctor helped me feel better about my parenting skills, but we found out Taylor has a serious astigmatism; not necessarily good news.

Yesterday we went for his second visit to the new doc. Again I was concerned what the out come would be. I'm not very strict about Taylor wearing his glasses all the time. I let him choose when to wear them or not 'cause I figure he knows when he can see and when he can't. I was anticipating the doctor being upset that I don't make him wear the glasses. Lucky me! I didn't get yelled at!

It is very rare for astigmatisms to correct themselves. BUT that is exactly what Taylor's is doing! His prescription this time is half the strength of his last one. The doctor said that is probably why Taylor hasn't been wearing the glasses. He expects Taylor to grow out of glasses all together. I was worried listening to the doctor and nurse talking about how different his vision is. They checked it 3 times with 3 different people doing the exam. I was such a relief that he made a change for the better!

Unexpected Visit

2008-08-08T22:49:00.005-06:00

When I was 8 we had a foreign exchange student from the Netherlands live with us. Last night she unexpectedly called DeNae saying she was in town and wanted to visit. So tonight we piled the kids in the car and headed over for a short visit with our "sister" from across the world.

Coos is lively, out going, lovely, well educated and I suspect wealthy too. It amazed me how easy it seemed for her to walk into a houseful of people she hadn't seen in 20 years and make everyone feel comfortable.

I remember being very excited to have another sister, even though at the time of her arrival we were still building our house and lived in a single wide trailer. I think at one time we had 6 girls living in one bedroom of that house.

Her family would send us the most divine licorice. I admit to being slightly disappointed that she didn't bring us any tonight. Dutch licorice combines the best of sweet and salty treats. Joey loves licorice, too. I'll settle for twizzler's black licorice if I have to, but I'd much rather have the real thing.

One day Coos spent the whole afternoon trying to teach me letters and numbers in Dutch. I wasn't a very good student. More often than not when my Dad said "I love you," it was in Dutch. I can remember how to say that, but that's about as far as my linguistic talent goes. If you end up in the Netherlands don't tell anyone "a cow said mew" unless you really mean it.

Another time my Mom and my sister went for a walk and wouldn't let me come. I through a major fit. Coos consoled me with a few pieces of candy. It was the nicest thing anyone had done for me. It was so nice in fact that I tried that little stunt again, but I didn't get anymore candy. What a waste of energy, I remember thinking to myself.

I'm glad she came to visit and thought to give DeNae a call.

If you like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain...

2008-08-08T15:20:00.003-06:00

"Escape (The Piña Colada Song)"

Yep that's it, the #1 song on the charts the day I was born. Wonder if my mom wanted to Escape.

This is where I found it.

What is yours?

Finally did it

2008-08-07T09:33:00.003-06:00

So I finally did it. I woke up this morning, weighed myself as usual, and (drum roll please) I've hit my half way point!

Its been 7 months now. When I first started in January I honestly thought I would be at my goal weight 2 months ago. Silly me... I'm actually glad to be losing slow and steady. The last few months the pounds have been coming off slower and slower and its getting frustrating. But even though I still have a long way to go (probably 7 more months), I'm proud to say that today I weigh less than I did the day I got pregnant with Taylor. I am lighter than I have been in 8 years! Fifteen more pounds and I'll be the same as when I got married. With that in mind I might just change my goal to 15 more instead of 30. Then I'd be 75% done instead of 50%! We'll see how I feel in a few pounds....

As for everything else that has happened this excellent summer, you'll have to wait a few weeks till school starts and then I'll spend a whole day blogging. Pictures, commentary, the works!

Can't wait can ya?

For Those in my graduating class

2008-07-09T10:45:00.003-06:00

(yep Heather I think you are the only one...)

class reunion

In case you are interested

5K Update

2008-06-25T15:04:00.003-06:00

Well I'm still doing it... 3 weeks left to train! I can't believe it has gone so fast. Last night I ran for 25 minutes straight, no walking. I know it doesn't sound like long, but it is fabulous for me. My goal right now is just getting the mileage, then I'll try to increase my speed. I'm running a very slow 4.8 mile an hour right now. Almost embarrassed to write that. I used to be pretty fast in school. There is no way I can keep up with RaNell. I guess I'll be running this one alone. That is actually ok with me. I get into a good grove when I'm alone. I'll be happy if I can finish with out any walking. That is the real goal. Even if I'm slow enough that the walkers beat me.

Any tips for increasing speed?

The Fam

2008-06-25T14:33:00.004-06:00

For our Young Womens' Girls Camp fund raiser this year we had family photos taken. I thought it was a incredibly great idea as I'm tired of buying pies for $70. We haven't had a family picture taken since Larry was a baby. I know I suck! Five years is just too long. Getting them done at church AND have them ready to take home the same night was just too easy. I couldn't pass that up.

Holy Crapoly! Look how tall Taylor is! I've got some pretty nice looking kids...

2008-05-31T20:34:00.001-06:00

No one wants to play my game? *sniff* sniff*

FUN GAME!

2008-05-30T20:32:00.005-06:00

I kicked my neighbor because I'm SEXY and I do what I want!

Naw just kidding...here's the real game...

Pick the month you were born:

January---------I kicked
February-------I loved
March-----------I karate chopped
April-------------I licked
May-------------I jumped on
June------------I smelled
July----------I did the Macarena With
August-------I had lunch with
September----I danced with
October--------I sang to
November-----I yelled at
December-------I ran over

Pick the day (number) you were born on:

1----- --a birdbath
2-------a monster
3-------a phone
4-------a fork
5-------a snowman
6-------a gangster
7-------my mobile phone
8-------my dog
9-------my best friends' boyfriend
10-------my neighbor
11-------my science teacher
12-------a banana
13-------a fireman
14-------a stuffed animal
15-------a goat
16-------a pick Le
17-------your mom
18-------a spoon
19-------a smurf
20-------a baseball bat
21-------a ninja
22-------Chuck Norris
23-------a noodle
24-------a squirrel
25-------a football player
26-------my sister
27-------my brother
28-------an ipod
29-------a surfer
30-------a llama
31-------A homeless guy

Pick the color of shirt you are wearing:

White---------because I'm cool like that.
Black---------because that's how I roll.
Pink-----------because I'm NOT crazy.
Red----------because the voices told me to...
Blue-----------because I'm sexy and I do what I want.
Green---------because I think I need some serious help.
Purple---------because I'm AWESOME!
Gray-----------because Big Bird said to and he's my leader.
Yellow--------because someone offered me 1,000,000 dollars.
Orange-------because my family thinks I'm stupid anyway.
Brown---------because I can.
Other----------because I'm a Ninja!
None-----------because I can't control myself.

So Sore

2008-04-29T20:07:00.002-06:00

I am so sore today! I had no idea that running outside was so different than running on a treadmill. I run these kinds of intervals on the treadmill all the time, but thirty minutes outside yesterday kicked my butt! Tomorrow should be easier though. I've been tempted to go out again today. Instead I think I'll stick to the schedule and see how fast I can build my stamina.

5K!

2008-04-28T20:34:00.003-06:00

RaNell called today and told me she is running a 5K in Manasa, CO in July. I think I might try it with her. Lots of people on MFP have trained with the couch to 5K method. I ran the first schedule tonight. It sounds easy, especially since I've been working out regularly for over a year now, but I thought I was going to die. I started out sprinting and by the time I finished I was hardly moving while "jogging". Joey said he could see me heaving all the way from the back door. 3 times a week? I can handle that. In 9 weeks it'll be AG! All Good!

I am soo excited! Anyone who wants to train with me (and takes the "I swear I won't laugh" oath) is welcome to join me!

Anyways, WISH ME LUCK!

2008-04-17T18:16:00.000-06:00

What is up with this weather!? Snow- still? Will it ever end?

The house

2008-04-17T18:04:00.002-06:00

Sorry- didn't realize I'd been so vague about the house.

Joey and I are trying to buy a house (actually Heather your parents own it) over by Radio Shack. The house is site built but has to be moved off the property. The moving part is what is causing the problems. So far we haven't been able to find a lender who "has a product to fit our needs." We finally met a loan officer who is pushing hard for us. The underwriters are scared to make a commitment though. Last week we were told we would know if we were approved on Friday. Friday they said Monday. Monday they said tomorrow at the latest. We haven't heard anything so far. Mostly they say if the house didn't have to move they would lend right away.

Another problem is we have to find roads that are wide enough to take house down. That might kill the project right there. We really really want it though.

We figure if we are supposed to happen it will, if not it won't; but it doesn't relieve much stress. It is nice to know we won't be out anything if it doesn't workout. We'll know at the end of the month.

Wish us luck!

Bits and Pieces

2008-04-16T20:04:00.003-06:00

I just have little things to blog about...not enough to give each its own post. Here's a run down on the goings on....

Joey and I performed in our ward's roadshow. It was so much fun! My only part involved me making eyes at my brother and begging him for a kiss. I figured that was slightly less embarrassing than giving my attention to the other married man or the 14 year old boys on stage with him. Thanks Jenn and Julie for making it not only entertaining, but also simple. I love that our basic ward motto is "less is more." That comes straight from our leadership. It takes so much pressure off.

Monday night was a perfect night. For the first time in months the wind didn't blow. Hooray! We had our normal 15 minute Family Home Evening then went out side for activity. We took the opportunity to clean up our yard. April seems to be a big cleaning month for our family. Usually (in windless years) we are out in the yard every night. We work for 30 or 45 minutes and then work turns to play. Taylor rode his motorcycle, Larry rode his bike, Kenny buried himself in sand, Joey and I planned landscaping and such. I LOVE summer nights. The whole family together having fun, getting along. I can't wait for more nights like this.

We still don't know what is going on with the house. The mortgage co says we should know Friday. That's what they said last week to though. Sigh. I'm not very patient. Time is running out. Joey and I measured the house tonight to see if it will fit down all the roads it needs to. I think it will be close but should work. We could be in a new house by the time school starts! I go from excitement to terror and back again.

Today I'm happy (but still embarrassed) to report that I crossed the line from being obese to overweight on the BMI chart. Only 25 pounds to a healthy weight for me. Sometimes it feels like it will take forever. These last two pounds have been killers. It has only been 3 months though.

Book Club

2008-04-10T14:28:00.003-06:00

Last night our book club met. I chose the last book we read so even though it was SNOWING and all I wanted to do was soak in the bath, I went. I chose the infamous Gone With the Wind which Joey calls, "That book about the stupid girl." He is quite right. My book was universally hated. (sob) Most people struggled to finish it. I find it funny actually. I'm so glad that I'm not easily offended. I just loved having the difference of opinion. Good friendly debate is healthy. I guess most people have chosen books that have a significant meaning to them personally. I picked mine because there is so much to discuss. No one understood why I picked a book that I didn't like the characters. I don't think you have to like the characters to enjoy the book. I actually could identify with them in a strange way. It was intriguing to me. Very rarely do you hear the South's side of the War, I found that interesting even though I don't sympathize with the South at all.

After discussing the book we educated one of the members about the coolness which is Napoleon Dynamite. I can't believe there are still people who haven't seen it!

So Easily Side-Tracked

2008-04-09T09:18:00.002-06:00

I woke up this morning fully intending to do laundry. I was doing pretty well until at some point I noticed the dishes and started washing them. I do a substantial amount of thinking while brainlessly washing dishes. This morning I thought of something I needed to look up online really quick. Before the computer loaded up I forgot what I was looking for, so I started browsing blogs, email, etc. All the sudden I remembered that I hadn't made Taylor's lunch yet. His ride was due any minute. This took me back into the kitchen where I saw the sink full of soapy water and heard the dry beeping. I think I'll change the laundry now. Maybe I'll get around to finishing the dishes too.

Am I turning into my mother?

Best Pumpkin Bread Ever

2008-04-07T12:44:00.002-06:00

Yesterday I got a lot of flack for not posting enough, so here is a short and SWEET one.

Pumpkin Bread

1 1/2 cup Sugar
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
1 cup pumpkin
1/2 cup water
1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Cinnamon
3/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp Cloves
1/2 tsp Nutmeg

Blend oil and sugar until crumbly. Add all other wet ingredients. Mix well. Sift dry ingredients together. Mix into wet ingredients. Pour into well greased loaf pans. Bake @ 325 for 1 1/2 hours.

As far as the rest of life is concerned things are going well- for us at least. I am more anxious for school to be out that Taylor is. We have lots of exciting things in the works for summertime. I'm not a very patient person and I'm always ready to move on to the next thing.

What did everyone think about Conference? The one thing that always strikes me is how glad I am that we have "lay" leadership. No one feels better than anyone else and no one is above telling a good joke. Those are real men and women up there on the stand. Just like you and me.

Last minute we invited friends over to watch conference with us. I forgot how much I enjoy having company! It was a little crazy with so many people crammed into my little house, especially at meal time. It reminded me of the gatherings we'd have at mom and dad's house before they left (sniff, sniff). Joey and I just keep an open door policy. Everyone is welcome to come and go as they please. If we don't invite you over it isn't cause we don't want you here. We just figure you'll just stop by when ever you want.

All's well that ends well

2008-03-20T21:29:00.002-06:00

Today was one of those days...you know the kind where a mysterious beeping noise wakes the whole family at 5 am. That sets the tone for the rest of the day.

We didn't find the cause of the beeping. It eventually went away on its own. I suspect it is Taylor's watch alarm and the watch is somewhere in the depths of the toy box. Even I could get lost in there. Kenny didn't go back to sleep. I tried to make him lay in my bed. I just got stepped on and elbowed in the face for the next hour or so. The early morning passed in a grumpy, sleepy daze. The boys made it to school with seconds to spare.

My spirits started to rise walking into the gym. A tough workout always does my mood good. I lifted weights for 45 minutes..ah a sigh of relief! I could finally feel my body relaxing. Next I jumped on the elliptical only to realize I had a "not so unexpected visitor". Nice. Short break. Back on the elliptical but the phone rings. I answer sweetly, "Hello?," while thinking, "Urgh! Just leave me alone already!" Raul is out of meds and needs me to go get his prescription. I can do that...later. A few more steps to the machine. I'm almost there! The phone rings yet again. DeNae this time. Raul doesn't want to wait, he wants her to take time off of work to get his meds. Can I please hurry? Fine, I'll stop now, get the meds, take the kids out of school early and maybe get a break at home.

The receptionist rolls her eyes as I walk into the doctor's office. Umm, have I done something wrong? You don't even know why I'm here. I ask for the scripts and after she slowly peruses the prescription folder I'm told they aren't ready. Gripping a small child in each hand I try to call Raul. Of course furious, he asks me to confront the receptionist again. Sigh...ok I'll see what I can do. I ask to talk to the doctor. She is busy and I'll need to make an appointment to see her. Under Raul's direction I ask to speak to a Physician's Assistant. Again eyes roll and I feel evil vibes crash into me. The receptionist goes into the back room. I hear impatient whispers. Fifteen minutes later she returns with the desired scripts. Huh? What was so hard in the first place?

Off to get the kids from school. No problems there. I LOVE their teacher!

At Smith's I drop of the half dozen or so prescriptions. I wonder how long I'll have to drag 4 unruly boys around the store. Exactly 30 minutes. Not too bad all in all. We went to the bakery and got free cookies. That kept them busy for all of five minutes. Then up and down every aisle with screaming, pinching, rather happy children.

Take the meds to Raul and rehash the horror of the doctor's office.

Home. Finally.

Laundry...Dishes...Dinner...

Then rush back to DeNae's house to deliver Josh's birthday present. I bet you can't guess what it was. Yup a motorcycle. But he promised to work some of it off. Yeah! Free babysitting for a year! We were invited to stay for cake and ice cream and then we invited ourselves to stay for a movie.

Home again. Put the kids to bed. Posting.

All's well that ends well....

On a brighter note

2008-02-29T13:01:00.002-07:00

This has been a wonderful week. Actually the last couple weeks have been quite nice. Last week I had to drive the kids to school everyday and stay to pick them up. Trying to fill the time up, I took my two other kids to the mall and window shopped. Usually I hate shopping and taking two children just makes it worse, but this time the kids were extremely well behaved. I enjoyed being able to browse through all the clothes and decide what I would buy if I was really shopping. Then we went to the park. Since the weather is warm there were lots of kids to play with and I was able to just mosey around and follow Kenny.

My parents visited for the weekend. We didn't make any plans for outings. I loved being able to just spend time with them and do what we felt like when we wanted to. All in all a very low pressure week.

This week, the weather is beautiful again! The kids have sunburns from playing outside so much. Joey has BBQed twice this week! I love it! Taylor didn't have school so I've stayed home and hung out with the kids. My house is cleaner than its been in months. Spring fever is hitting me hard. I'm already planning all the activities I want to do with the kids this summer. So much to do and so little time!

Know your neighborhood

2008-02-29T12:59:00.001-07:00

Here is a website that locates registered sex offenders. Some one on another website I frequent posted it. I think its always good to know who is around you.

What if...?

2008-02-26T12:28:00.003-07:00

Do you ever think "What if"? Not the "what if I did something different with my life" kinda what if, a whole different kind. Let me give you an example:

Today is the first day its been warm enough for my kids to play outside. As I watched Kenny crawl down the stairs in his huge overstuffed jacket, my first thought wasn't "ahh he's so cute!", it was "what would I do if a swarm of Africanized bees attacked my family today?"

Weird huh? I know I'm a dork...then I start wondering if I'm being paranoid or prepared. What do you think?

I think this kind of stuff all the time. Washing dishes, I wonder what I would do if I got a call saying Joey was seriously hurt. Who would I call first and what route would I take to the hospital. I lay awake at night with Joey snoring next to me wondering what I would do if he wasn't home and there was a natural disaster or someone tried to break in. Then I start wondering if thinking about this stuff too much will make it happen. So I concentrate hard on not thinking about anything at all!

Can you say Crazy?

About Smiling...

2008-02-25T14:57:00.003-07:00

Dale Carnegie:
It costs nothing, but creates much. It enriches those who receive, without impoverishing those who give. It happens in a flash and the memory of it sometimes last forever...Yet it cannot be bought, begged, borrowed or stolen, for it is something that is no earthly good to anybody until it is given away.

I read this quote and LOVED it! I have a hard enough time just looking at other people let alone smiling at them, but I plan on making it a personal goal of mine.

22.4 and Getting Younger!

2008-02-23T21:32:00.002-07:00

Anyone ever try this? Adding a multivitamin and driving slower would make me 18 again!

Risk again

2008-02-19T15:36:00.001-07:00

We played again last night....Joey "spanked" me. Pretty hard too. He won in only an hour and a half....Let us never speak of it again.

Its All Fun and Games

2008-02-18T12:16:00.002-07:00

At our house it is all fun and games until some one starts to lose.

A few weeks ago I found Rage at Alco. I would have bought more than one deck and horded them, but there were only two and Jenn was with me. I decided to be nice and not tackle her and steal her deck. She was buying it for my brother after all. Rage is the game my family played growing up. My grandparents introduced it to us and addiction was soon to follow. Our gaming motto became, "All relationships stop at the Rage table." So true, so true... Sadly Fundex quit making the game for 10 or 15 years. Decks were almost impossible to get, selling for over $25 on Ebay for torn/worn out cards. Yeah, its that good. My Grandma has two decks that she promised Joey would inherit. He might have a fight on his hands if it ever comes down to it.

Last night Joey and I played it with the kids. Watching their confused expressions as our playful banter turned into all out nastiness, was entertaining in and of its self. Strategies don't work quite as well when there are only two players. I gave myself Mad Rages more often than I want to admit. In the end I prevailed. I won, I won! La la la la la la! The final score: Me 47 Joey 33! Neither of them the greatest scores in history, but I WON!

After the kids went to bed, we played Risk. We have history with this game also. Joey will never again (I hope) ali himself to a friend who is trying to take me out. We didn't speak for a week after that. Last night, I controlled over half the world when Joey decided to go and try to wipe me out. He did a pretty good job. I was not happy. 15 minutes of blatant massacre and then it was my turn. I returned the favor regaining control of my land and also some of his. Isn't it funny how the game is all good until the tide turns and you start to lose? Joey and I went back and forth whining like little babies and then gloating and talking smack. Finally after 3 hours (and me taking over the world again) a very grim Joey quit the game and made me go to bed. I don't think we've ever finished a game of Risk before. One of us always gets mad and gives up.

We played a game of Monopoly for over a week once, but that's another story....

Good News/Bad News

2008-02-09T22:56:00.000-07:00

The good news is:

Last night Joey went to Clovis to get my motorcycle. Yes, that's right...MY motorcycle. It even runs already. I'm very impressed. I think it needs some non-essential fixings, like a rim or handle bars or something. He's been riding it fine with what its got. I'm so excited to learn to ride this Spring! Joey said he can even lower it so that my feet actually touch the ground! Such innovative thinking...I wish we could apply it to the rest of the house. If my feet could only touch the floor when I sit on the couch now...ah wishful thinking. The bike is heavy so I'm going to have to work out so that I can lift it off of me when I fall. That is the rule for the boys. No riding until you can lift the bike. Maybe I'll take a picture or two of me on it. I don't have any current pictures of me anyway. Don't worry it won't be any "Motorcycle Magazine" type picture. I'm way too sexy for that.

The bad news:

Our water heater broke. Joey and Travis are at Wal-Mart right now buying parts for it. I'm sure it will be an all night affair. That will make two in a row for them. Travis went to Clovis with Joey and they didn't get back until 2 am -ish. Who knows how long the water heater will take. Joey decided that he wanted to rip out a wall and put a new access door to the heater closet. Not a bad idea if it wasn't already almost midnight. You should have heard them talking before they knew I was home from the store. They are delirious and using power tools. It should be an interesting night.

A few updates

2008-02-09T00:07:00.000-07:00

So I've made some changes to my blog. What do you think? I'm pretty happy with it. It represents my personality much more than it used to. I tried to change the template but it kept having some kind of error. That is ok. I kinda like the one I've got, simple and classic. I had no idea how long it takes to customize a blog. Joey went to Clovis this evening. He took the kids with him, what a sweetie, so I've had time alone to make some modifications. I have been sitting in the same spot for four hours! I watched a movie for some distraction, but seriously, my stuff won't get changed often.

Just a quick weight loss update...I've lost 15 pounds! Only 3 more to go to reach my Valentine's Day goal. Wish me luck!

High of 42!

2008-01-31T17:38:00.000-07:00

WooHoo! Tomorrow's high is supposed to get up to 42! Maybe my pipes will thaw and I'll have cold water again! I love hot showers, but its been a little ridiculous....

It never seems like winter until the pipes start to freeze. Usually around noon the temp get high enough that they thaw on their own. No such luck this week.

Tuesday the pipes froze. I just wanted a nice calming bath and didn't want to wait for the Great Thaw, so I turned the heater way up. An hour later not only did the tub still not have water, but the sink didn't either. Something was NOT right. So I checked under the house. The main pipe coming into the house had broke! After spending half an hour with the water company's automated telephone service (ie No! Yes! I WANT TO TALK TO A REPRESENTATIVE!), I finally talked to a real person who told me she "didn't know when the guy could turn my water off. He would work me into his schedule". Nice. Luckily the water was turned off before Joey got home from work a mere hour later. It didn't take him long to fix it and turn the water back on. Just my luck, I had left the faucets on with the plug in the sink and flooded the bathroom. We had a space heater on the floor. Thank goodness it didn't make all the water on the floor electric. I let Joey test that.

I'm still waiting for that bath....

What to do?

2008-01-29T11:43:00.000-07:00

In an unfortunate accident this weekend I tore the only pair of pants I own that fit me. I have a full wardrobe of things I should fit in soon. It includes several pairs of pants that I can get on, zip, and button, but they are still tight enough to give me that unsightly "muffin top" look. So do I wear them even though I know they don't look very good or do I risk the chance of constantly being over dressed and only wear dresses in public until the pants fit? If I continue at the rate I'm going I should fit into them well in about 2-4 weeks. I just can't imagine buying new clothes when I plan on losing soon and not having them fit in a few weeks.

(I know there must be some blog stalkers out there...I'd love your opinions too!)

I Need Help!

2008-01-27T19:01:00.000-07:00

My skin is incredibly dry! It doesn't matter how much lotion I put on it just seems to get worse. I've heard you shouldn't use lotions with lanolin or alcohol in it, but everything I own has them. Even my body butter isn't helping. What is your favorite moisturizer? Where do I get it?

What a Treat

2008-01-27T10:11:00.000-07:00

On Sunday we were invited to "Cowboy Up" and attend a ward party. Well that party was last night. I went mostly to support the activities committee as I usually am not the "Cowboyin' Up" kinda girl. I was so excited to go that I dressed to the hilt- in sweat pants and a tee shirt. It turned out to be a lot of fun though. An award winning cowboy poet and his singing wife were the main event (except of course the potluck). We were treated to love songs such as:

If My Nose was Runnin' Money Honey. It goes something like this...

"If my nose was runnin' money honey...I'd blow it all on you. If my nose was runnin' money honey...but it's snot!"

Then we heard, "I Just Don't Look Good Naked Anymore".

"...pot belly, thunder thighs, my butt's a draggin the floor! I just don't look good naked anymore!"

Thanks Van and Cathy...um...whatever your last name is!