The REAL Countdown

Everyone in the blogosphere has been talking about when the new Twilight book is coming out. (Is it tomorrow?-I haven't been keeping track...) Twilight Schmilight.

Oh no, my friends. THIS is what I'm looking forward to. CAN'T. WAIT!




November 21, 2008, baby!

Sometimes...

Sometimes...when something is less expensive, it's because it really is cheap.

Sometimes...it's better not to clean.

Sometimes...when something is labeled "dry clean only", even though it's cotton, you should dry clean it instead of opting to wash it in the machine.

Sometimes..."all I need is the air that I breeeeathe, and to looooove yoooouuuu."

Sometimes...air drying is the better choice.

Sometimes...drapes decide to have a mutiny and try to display their owner's personality (dorky).

Sometimes...six inches shorter makes a huge difference.

Sometimes...I wish companies would pre-shrink their fabric.

Sometimes...when you decide to wash one set of drapes, you should wait and see what the result is before washing the back window set, instead of doing them simultaneously.

Sometimes...the back set shrinks as much as the front set.

Sometimes...you just have to "embrace the awkwardness". (Thanks for the phrase, Suz! I need to embroider that on a pillow; it's my life's motto.)

Skydiving

Because it was my birthday, and because I'm still a young spry thing, I decided to go skydiving. It was so amazing! There's a little place out in Rexburg that takes you up. They run you through the whole thing before you go into the plane, and you do a test run simulator, so you know what cords to pull and all that. They send you out with an instructor, too, so that you don't get hurt.

Well, we were up in the plane, and I was a little nervous. It was time to jump, and I made a little "eeeee!" noise. But once I was out there...holy cow! It is the most amazing feeling! You're falling, but you don't really feel like you're falling. Then it came time to pull my cord.

I pulled...and nothing happened. I tried again, and nothing! I started to freak out. My instructor, Bill, who was holding my arm tried to get my emergency cord to pull, and still nothing! I was going to die.

But then, at the last second, Bill wrapped his arms around my waist, and pulled his cord, and we made it down to the ground. It was kind of a bumpy landing since the parachute was carrying two of us down. When we landed my leg twisted a little, and I hurt my knee. Nothing to be alarmed at, but I had to use crutches for a couple of days and get it checked out.

....

....

Okay, I really, really wish the above story was true. It's not. Except for the hurt knee thing. Friday Pete and I went to get haircuts, and as I was stepping out of the van my knee buckled under me. I wasn't jumping out, or leaping out, or doing anything cool. Just...getting out. I rubbed my knee a little, tried to get out again, and I couldn't put any weight on it. I could bend it, but not straighten it. The doctor said, "Well, it's not broken. You could get an MRI done for $800, or just ice it and use crutches and see how it does." We took the latter option, and now it's mostly better. Friday I couldn't do anything with it so Pete carried me around. Saturday I used one crutch and gimped around all day on it. By Sunday night I could put some weight on it and limp a good deal. And now it's still a bit sore going up and down the stairs, but I'm crutch-free and back to normal (as normal as I can be, anyway). Very random.

Pete and I still need haircuts, but now I'm a little paranoid. And, I feel like an idiot. And I don't even have a cool story.

But I think I'll go skydiving next year for the big 3-0.

All About MEEEEEEE!

Sunday, July 27, was my 29th birthday!

I was sick and had a gimpy leg, but it was still a good day. (More about the leg later. Or maybe it's earlier since posts go up as most recent. But I'll be writing about it later...) My mom made hamburgers and potato salad for dinner-my favorite! We had brownies instead of cake because we get caked out with birthdays so close (Troy's and Jakob's are right after mine, all within two weeks). We didn't think of candles, so my dad found some long matches and shaped them into an "N". I'm glad, because half had burned out before I got to blow them out, and my sore throat/cough prevented me from getting a deep breath blow. And then I got to share my germs with everyone by blowing on the brownies.

Here's an awesome slide show of my day. I don't have any pics of my gifts because my camera batteries died before then. I'm waiting for Kar to post about my birthday (ahem) so I can steal her pics. I got a printer/scanner/photocopier from my parents, "So I Married an Axe Murderer" DVD from Pete, "Muppet Treasure Island" DVD from Brianna, taken out to lunch last week from Lex, some fudge from my mom, and happy birthday notes from friends. (Facebook is finally good for something!)

A few notes:
Brock is half-naked in one picture. He had pooped in his undies, and I remembered Pull-Ups but not pants. Pete stripped him down and hosed him off, which he hated. And, coincidentally or not, he hasn't had an accident since. He also hasn't pooped since, either, but hey, less mess for me to clean up.
Dylan rode a long board down the driveway with his dad, and totally ate it! He got a fat lip complete with blood blister, and a huge scrape on his eye. Poor kid!
Ivy has a mohawk, because I'm too lazy after bathing her to try and style her hair. Her brothers had mohawks at the same age because that's how our kids' hair comes, I guess. It's "Awe-sahm!", as Troy would say. Or maybe he'd call it "Svweet".

So, I wish I wasn't sick, or that my leg was okay on my birthday, but it could have been worse!

I'M NOT MOM!

ouI tend to lose myself in the title of "mom". As a mom, you don't really get sick days or vacation days, per se. I love my job, I love my kids; but honestly, a little break from them once in a while is needed. They're so dang cute, but can be so emotionally draining. You give so much to these little beings and don't give to yourself nearly as much as you should to keep yourself going, to keep yourself you.

I needed "me" time, and my birthday lent the perfect excuse to plan such an excursion. I called a few friends that are also moms, and they were more than happy to join in on my "I'm not mom!" day away.

We started out at my mom's house. My sister Lex joined us in the morning. We giggled like little girls over YouTube videos like this one and this one. We pigged out on pizza, then put in a movie and didn't really watch it because we were talking too much.

Here's Kar with the remotes. My parents' TV system is like performing surgery-it's so complicated!


Here's creative Arin, who brought stuff to make hair bows, who should totally make them for profit:


Here's April, who decided to veg out like me and talk:


We then caught a matinee show of "Mama Mia!" Very cheesy, but very cute. Pierce Brosnan really shouldn't sing, but Meryl Streep did awesome. Oh, and her short friend on the movie is Ron Weasley's mom from the Harry Potter movies.

We then ate at Winger's-yum yum! It's so nice to not have to share food with kids, and ask for booster seats and high chairs. And I got free dessert because it was my birthday.



Because we're all bloggers, we were all taking pictures except for Arin, who forgot her camera. Lo and behold, though, she had remembered it, but discovered the fact after the night was over:


It was very fun, and very relaxing. Of course, my day wouldn't be complete without coming home to find this:


Yeah, that would be Troy. And Desitin. And it wasn't just on him; it was on the curtains, and the door knob, and the chair, and the carpet, and Pete's hat, and the diaper bag, and the windows. When he saw me inspecting the mess, he said, "Ah, man!" He's totally earned his title of "Mr. Mischief" tenfold. But you know what? I wasn't even mad. Not even when I also found this:


Yep, unwrapped cubes of butter. We bought a fridge lock. We'll see how long it lasts, though, before the vultures (boys) learn to get it undone.

I'm definitely having a "I'm not mom!" day again!

Tubby Toast

A game created by Jakob, Brock, and Troy, the next Parker Brothers!

To set up: lay out as many blankets and pillows as you can find onto the extremely old, super comfortable couch.

Object of the game: to jump as high, as long, and as much as you can onto said pile of blankets.

Play starts when one player jumps lengthwise from the arm of the couch, landing on the blanket pile. Each player continues, not really taking turns. Landing on each other is a definite plus. Staying on the pile is also acceptable. Play persists until it's time to bury one another under the blanket pile. Play ends when the players tire of the game, a player gets hurt, or the players get distracted by some other game/toy.

To win: have a blast, and erupt into fits of laughter.

Origin of the title: no clue, but a fat piece of "tan" bread makes a good game name! I'm raising geniuses!

Open Mouth...

After reading this post, it got me thinking, have I ever said something that offended anyone, or that made me feel like a complete idiot?

Uh, yeah. Totally.

When Pete and I were first married, my cute sister-in-law and brother-in-law were purchasing their first home. They were in the midst of re-painting and cleaning and all that jazz. They were kind of mocking the colors the previous owners had picked out for rooms. So I decided to join in, saying, "Yeah, so they had bright red in one room, and some kind of celery green color in the other?" And they replied, "Um, the green is what we just painted today."

Yeah, I'm an idiot. I tried to play it off, like, "Yeah, I was just noticing all the different colors, it's so nice to not have everything be white..." or whatever I said around the foot that was now in my mouth. I hope they weren't offended, and if they were they just played it off. I really didn't think the green was bad; in fact I really like it, and half of my house has different shades of green in it. I was just trying to fit in to my new family, you know, building relationships, joining in the fun... Um, still feel dumb, six years later, typing about it.

So, have you ever said something so totally mortifying, or had someone say something like that to you? If so, I'd love to hear it! (This is the part where you hit the "comment" link below this post.) And if you're way embarrassed to share, share it anyway- just leave the comment as anonymous.

Going Bald

Can your hairbrush be mistaken for Chewbacca?

Can you make a wig out of your vacuum bag contents?

Can you take a bath without using the metal plug?

Do you perk up when Rogaine commercials come on TV?

Do your feet look like a Hobbit's after walking around your house bare-footed?

Then YOU, my friend, had a baby a couple of months ago!

The Choice is Yours: Ugly or Skanky?

I went clothes shopping a couple of weeks ago. At Wal-mart.

Maybe this was my first mistake, but hey, had to take the car to get lubed, and also had to get some food, and why not look at some clothes while I'm at it? Wal-mart is made for people like me, who are totally into one-stop shopping and a small sampling of brands. Though they totally don't carry the face goop that I love anymore...

I had a college roommate that worked at Wal-mart, and besides providing her with endless stories of crazy co-workers (seriously, I think some of them needed psychiatric evaluations) and ornery customers, she would occasionally come home with some cute shirts.

So I found an adorable skirt. Nice and cheap, multicolored so I could possibly place many different tops with it, making it versatile and making me feel like I really own 6 skirts. Go me, right? (I would love to go on "What Not to Wear" someday, but that day is oh so down the road. Come on, do I really want a $90 shirt that I have to dry clean when I'm battling the spit-up and drool and who knows what else?) Then I went looking for a cute top to go with it.

I grabbed a few shirts from both the "junior" section and the "ladies" section and headed toward the dressing room. I figured if I looked good in the clothes I picked out under the pasty death lights, I would look fabulous everywhere else!

Top #1: totally baggy and craptastic. Picked up from the "ladies" section. It made my hips look wide, my chest look droopy, and my waist nonexistent. Hmm.

Top #2: pretty decent. Also plucked from the "ladies" section. Sure, I'd have to wear a tank top thingy underneath, but what shirt do I not have to do that with nowadays?

Top #3: absolutely positively the cutest top I may have ever put on my body. Picked up from the "junior" section. LOVED this shirt. But...it was a tad too tight. I mean, I was looking for a top to go with a skirt that I planned to wear to church, and no one needs to see exactly what lies beneath, if you get my drift. So I decided I'd go back and get the same shirt just one size bigger.

But...Top #3 didn't exist one size bigger. Either they didn't make it, thinking that every girl that would shop in the "junior" section is either semi-slutty or itsy-bitsy, or the bigger sizes were all gone, because that shirt was the cutest top on every other person's body, too. *sigh*

I bought Top #2. And really, it's rather fetching. (You wanna see this hot hottie in Top #2? It's what I'm wearing in my header pic.) But it made me a little sad, because I'm not a junior anymore, but I don't quite fit in the ladies section, either. I get weird looks while shopping in both, the "why are you in my section?" looks. Where's the cute young mom section? Where, Wal-mart? (A side note: I don't buy all my clothes at Wal-mart; I totally have to have Gap jeans. So yes, I wear my $5 T-shirts with my $50+ jeans. No one does contradiction quite like me.)

So, is the choice going to always be the shirts that are too tight and say "spoiled brat" on them, or the shirts that are frumpy tents? Maybe I'll have to branch out my shopping center choices until someone makes a "cute young mom" store.

Memories

Here are the directions:
1. As you comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you know me a little or a lot, anything you remember!
2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you.

Meet My Pet, Peeve

My sister Lex asked on her blog what our pet peeves are. Or one pet peeve. Hers was people not knowing how to drive through a 4-way stop or round-abouts. I agree with her completely. But mine...

Well, the first one I thought of is I hate it when people interrupt me. And it happens to me a lot. I do tend to ramble and repeat myself, so it probably happens to me more than to other people. But it just makes me feel boring or unimportant. And I hate it when people try to guess what I'm saying. Pete will do this to me sometimes. I'll be like, "I would love to-" and he interrupts with "-go to this movie?" And that's totally NOT what I was going to say! Then I go, "No, I would love to-" and he goes, "-eat some chocolate?" NO! Stop interrupting! Then you'd be able to find out what it was that I would love to do! Grr.

So, what is your top pet peeve? Either comment with it or write it on your blog.

Cheese-tastic Mormon Musicals and My Overactive Tear Ducts

So. Been having a rough...week. Or so. I'm pretty sure it started last Tuesday, which coincidentally or not, that's when I started potty training Brock. And come to find out it fell right into my body's womanly schedule (a lovely TMI tidbit), even though I didn't know that until today. So I could blame it on PMS, too. But I think it's been, like, the perfect storm of happenings to make me turn into the demon wife/mother that I've been lately.

Also, I hate World of Warcraft. That's all I'm going to say about that. Anyway...

My sister Lex called me up, and invited me and my sister and my Grandpa to "The White Star", which is the sequel to "Saturday's Warrior". It's 35 years later, and now Jimmy, the main guy from "Saturday's Warrior", is a dad. The first part of the show they basically sing snippets of all the songs from "Saturday's Warrior", and then segue into "The White Star" after that. When Jimmy started singing "Brace Me Up", the tears started flowing.

Who am I, where am I going?

Here I sit all alone not knowing why.

Brace me up, I'm so discouraged.

Help, I think I'm gonna die.

How it hurts to be a no one.

How I wish I was someone really loved.

Brace me up, I'm such a failure.

Heaven, help me, up above.

Isn't there someone with a hand to spare?

Who can share what they have for my hunger?

Isn't there someone who will take me as I am?

Brace me up, not put me down.

Make me feel like I'm as good as another...

Um, yeah. My thoughts and feelings as of late EXACTLY. Basically, I've just felt...all worn out. Just tired of being a mom right now, and dealing with the kids and the laundry and the cooking. And the cleaning, the endless cleaning... Kind of emotionally drained, if you will. I think as moms we just give and give and give, and don't get much in return. Well, that's how it is for me, anyway. Lately I've just felt like a slave, and I've kind of lost me. I've been doing my job so much that I've become my job.

Does any of that make sense? Well, even if it doesn't, it does to me. So there!

Back to the musical: I liked the overall story, though some (most) of the songs were cheesy. But that's kind of to be expected. After all, the person that wrote the songs in the sequel was Janice "Crap" Perry. (I don't hate all her songs. I love "Love is Spoken Here" and "A Child's Prayer". But "As Sisters in Zion"? Gag.) The singers were amazing. I'll admit, though, some of the story line was crazy. Like, Jimmy's son gets visited by his dead brother that he never knew he had. And his Mormon Scottish ancestors had a girl that never got sealed to them. (Sounds kinda soap-opera-ey, huh? But it's not.) And it's this huge big mystery about why Jimmy fell away from the church again. Then he ends up seeing his dead sister at the end, after his son has head trauma. Yes, now you're all intrigued, aren't you?

Anyway, feeling better today, though the potty training is still very much an issue, and will be for some time, I fear. But at least I can be cleaning up bodily fluids while new crazy songs run through my head.

Potty Training STINKS!

Yes, pun intended.

I'm now debunking the myth that if you wait until the child is older to start potty training, that it's easier. Um, totally not the case. I think either the child is easy to train or not at all.

Now, if you'll excuse me while I go clean about 5 blankets that have now been peed on, along with the bin they were sitting in, that Brock was sitting in.

Grrr.

A-Ha!

Finally caught it!

These are a little blurry and off-center, because Ivy was lying on my lap. I was trying to get her to smile, so I wasn't looking at the camera screen to see what the pictures actually looked like. But I'll take 'em.

And a little shout-out here. I loved this video when I was little... (A-ha's "Take On Me")

Every. Second.

Hole in brownies:

The hole-maker:

Reality Bites

So, I got tagged. Which, by the way, I think that tag posts are supposed to be called "meme" posts. Don't know why; I figure it's short for "Look at me! Look at me!" Something like that.

Anyway, this is about random right now shots, which can be kind of embarrassing. So, here we go...

1. Laundry room. Ours is part of our storage room. I LOVE my washing machine and clothes dryer. We had some leftover carpet from when our house was built, so I stuck it in front of the machines, for which I'm glad. I almost always end up sitting on said carpet to separate clean laundry into the kids' piles, and then fold it there as well. See the cute baskets piled high in front? That's a standard part of my laundry room scene. Oh, and I can pretty much guarantee that there's a load sitting in the dryer, too. Two big thumbs down for doing laundry for six people!



2. Favorite room. Like Kar and Arin, it's my bedroom. My bed is never made. Unless I just cleaned the sheets. But I love our bedroom furniture we purchased about 1 1/2 years ago. It's just...kind of a haven.


3. Favorite shoes. My Mary Jane Dr. Martens. Love them. Wear them with just about everything unless I'm wearing black.


4. Toilet. Shot in the most flattering position I could come up with. I hate toilets!


5. Kitchen sink. Mine's fairly clear of dishes right now. But that pile of clothes sitting in the left side would be the peed in pile, thanks to Brock and his potty training. Awesome, huh?


6. Fridge. Looks like I need to go shopping.


7. What the kids are doing. Jakob, Brock and Troy were watching Spiderman 3 when I took this. Brock and Troy were also eating fruit snacks. Ivy had just gotten done with a nap and was crying for some love and a bottle. Okay, mostly just a bottle.




8. Self-portrait. Hair not done-no time this morning. Eyes super bloodshot-not enough sleep. Kinda fake smile, because I was trying to make sure my camera made the "focused" noise. Now I know why I don't have many pictures of myself.

9. Closet. LOVE my closet. Nice and roomy. Very organized.

10. Dream vacation. A tie between Grand Cayman and Disneyland. Pete and I want to go on a cool trip for our 10-year anniversary, and we've mentioned Grand Cayman. Lots of white soft sand, lots of warm water...ahhhh. I went there 11 years ago with my parents, and it was what I hope heaven is like. And I want to take the fam to Disneyland or Disneyworld when Ivy is old enough to go on all the big rides. So we're looking at maybe 4 years down the road. Jakob should still be young enough to enjoy it all, too (going on 9 in 4 years). We just need to get out of debt a little bit first...

So there you have it. A glimpse into my chaotic/messy life! I tag...anyone that wants to do it!

Sharing Time

I'm so awesome and thoughtful. (And HUMBLE.)

I just wanted to let everyone in on some things that I find utterly amazing, while I wait for Brock to pee in the toilet. Yep, just started Brock for now; if Troy shows interest I'll start him, too. Yesterday was the first day, and it was hit and miss, literally. And today, well...

ANYWAY, just so you know, the pumice stone thingy that I found in the cleaning aisle worked wonders on my hard water deposits in my toilets. Just ask Pete. I think he read my quirk post about how I hate toilets, and so he used it for me. I asked him if he wanted gloves to do it, and he looked at me like I was crazy. He was like, "What? The toilets just got cleaned. This is just the hard water buildup." And I puked a little in my mouth at the thought of no gloves while sticking the hand in the toilet. Ugh.

And for your stalking pleasure, I'm pleased to bring you more blogs that I am now stalking. One is Navel Gazing at Its Finest. One of her posts, or I guess the comments on her post, you have to check out. If you're having a crappy day, read it! I guarantee you'll be laughing and feel way better about yourself. And really, any of her posts are a crack-up. The other is She Just Walks Around With It. This chick is an ultra-talented writer. You must read about her, and then read this post. I have literally laughed out loud reading her blog. Not LOL, which is I think what people write when they go "Huh, that's kinda funny" in their head, or when they say something nasty that they really mean and then don't want it to be taken so hard by the other party, like "You have stinky feet LOL". Yeah, they really do mean you have stinky feet. (Sorry, random tangent.) I have wasted multiple hours stalking her blog. But is it really wasting time when you're enjoying every minute? (Wow, I should be in advertising, or marketing, or something.)

And to share a little something about my very bright children, namely Jakob: he made a Bat mobile. Cool, huh?


Okay, I'm done sharing for now. But if you want to share anything with me (other cool products, other cool sites, things about your cool kids, etc.), feel free. But you don't have to LOL.

Ivy's Baby Blessing

This Sunday we blessed our little Ivy. I made her dress out of my old temple dress that no longer fit. YAY for me and my mad sewing/homemaking skills! (Am I full of myself or what?)

We took family photos. Our immediate family pics turned out, well, as good as they can, considering how family pictures go for us. If you want to read about our other experiences, click here or here. And you can see these "precious" moments in the slide show below, labeled Chaos 1-5. Yep, that good.

Here's our little girl.





Here's our most up-to-date extended family photo, which may not get updated for a while. Brianna and Spencer are driving as I type to New York, where grad school and new jobs await them. We're definitely going to miss Beej and Spencer (they're on the right in this pic).

Here are the proud, and I daresay HOT, mammas with the bubbas. My kids call Kar's baby (Micah) "Baby Mee-kah". Cute kids!



*sigh* I loves my fambly.

Weed Trees

There's nothing like family coming into town to put the fire under my butt. (Quick story: I told Jakob we were going to put the fire under his butt to get him to run during T-ball because he wouldn't. He started crying because he thought I meant that literally.)

Anyway, our yard was a mess, to say the least. I thought of some lame excuses as to why our yard was in shambles:

1. We're trying to bring the neighborhood's property values down so we don't have to pay as much in taxes.

2. We thought there was a weed growing contest for the county fair, and we were trying to win.

3. We're shooting for the "au natural" look (like the desert landscapes/no grass rules being established in Arizona and elsewhere).

4. We felt bad for all the homeless bugs in the area.

5. It's hot.

6. I just had a baby...two months ago.

7. We've been wanting more bushes, and these were free.

8. I wanted to know what it feels like to uproot a tree with my bare hands.

9. I missed having hay fever.

10. We wanted to see how hardy our bleeding hearts actually are.

To show the world how awful it was, and to show you what a hard worker I am (ahem) , I took before and after shots.

Backyard before:



Backyard after: (yep, I couldn't see the bleeding hearts in there before, either)


Front yard before:


Front yard after: (we're ignoring the pathetic grass; we're focusing on the weeding, folks)


My weed tree! Well, one of several. Notice the sad, sad bush sitting next to it. Yeah, that dead brown thing. If only my bushes were as robust as my weeds.


While I weeded in the back, the kids ran around in the sprinklers, and the neighbor kids joined them. So here are some way cute pictures in a slide show! (I just figured out the whole slide show thing today. Kinda proud of myself.)