The Holidays and the New Year coming

Christmas for us was great. The kids had fun and we had the general craziness of running around visiting family etc.

Due to a misunderstanding one of my siblings didn't come to the area for Christmas this year, feelings were too sensitive and the fear that the stress of the season would simply compound the issues was understandable. We missed her and her kids though.

My grandpa did come up though, and my other sister came to visit shortly after Christmas!

I always adore seeing her and her family! She really does inspire me to do better with my health and activity levels. Not in a "Your fat you need to take better care of yourself" kind of way... more in a "I'm cute and spunky and love life!" kinda of way that makes you want to be like her :)

This effect of hers made me do a double take on a cultural tradition that I usually find kinda dumb... the New Years Resolutions. Yes, I usually come up with something dumb and then halfheartedly attempt to do them for about a week and then right it of as a "stupid tradition anyways!"

Last year I resolved to "loose weight" which is normal... and which I did better at least year than I think I ever have... however about 3/4 of the way through the year I dropped the ball and gained it all back.

Soooo, this year I'm not resolving to loose weight. nope. I'm going to resolve to be healthier all around... and I'm going to drag my family kicking and screaming with me if I have to! (which I may literally have to do... I've decided that we should go hiking and camping more this year when the weather will permit).

So, my eating habits and exercise habits are going to get a makeover (I am still exercising, just not as much as I should be) and yes, I'm going to get away from town more often... even if it is just a couple of miles away.

Jer and I are pretty much homebodies, we tend to only leave town about 2-3 times a year... and by leaving town I mean going farther than my parents house that is 20 minutes away. Sad, that is going to change!

and for some reason, though this reads a lot like a regular resolution... it doesn't feel so much like one. These things are actually things I WANT to do, not just need to.

Hopefully that makes a world of difference.

Now it's time to research a book with good places to go hiking in the area!

Really great thought

I came across this comment on a blog I occasionally check. I thought it was very true and needed to be shared... so I'm sharing it!

"People pull each other to respond in ways they find predictable. We all see through a lens that is based on answers to basic questions such as “Can I trust other people?” “Am I worthy of the care or attention of others?” and “Do I have something to say / Am I capable?” If someone has generally negative answers to those questions (often due to poor parenting) they will pull others to respond to them in ways that confirm those answers… The challenge for the rest of us, and the “really hard question” is to recognize this and NOT respond the way they are pulling us to. As one author put it, we need to “give better back” rather than just reacting."

I currently am in amazement as to what people sometime project onto others. Things like "I can't trust you" really become "I can't trust myself" and sends a huge warning sign to everyone around them that everyone else probably shouldn't trust them either.

Anyways, interesting... and I thought I would share. :)

Wow... just wow

Okay, so apprently I had no clue what I was getting into...

No.... I knew I was clueless, I just didn't realize HOW clueless!

Apparently parent organizations for charter schools are a lot more involved than regular public schools. This is probably because charter schools don't have as much background support. You see, charter schools function as their own district, that means that the "principal" is also the "superintendent" and that the "school board" oversees more than just the school, but all the district level type things too, like making sure that the snow days are okay as far as state guidelines etc.

What this means for the PFA (Parent Faculty Association... because PTA is copyrighted or trademarked or something that makes it illegal for us to use it...) is that just about anything the school/district needs a volunteer for, they go to the PFA. So, for instance, the school needs to set the calendar for next year... there is a deadline.... well, they want parents to have a very big say in how that is all hashed out. Sooooo, guess who it's put under? Yup, the PFA.

Add to that the fact that the PFA was organized late, as in the middle of last month late, which means we are scrambling to get things done. Book fairs, spring carnival, community nights, the holiday fundraiser (which is done thank goodness... well, except for giving the top sellers their prizes... but that will be done on the last day of school before Christmas Break) ...

And add to that the fact that we had no funds to start out with!  Most schools parent organizations have a small fee that is paid at registration... like $3 or something, that and a form to fill out with what you are willing to help with, and permission things to sign allowing for things like student directories etc. Ya, well... we didn't get any of that, because we weren't 'born' yet.

Talk about a crappy time to have a birthday!  That and I still don't have Christmas done.... oh, I got my kids done, just not everyone else! AHHHHHHHH!

If you hear a big "POP" coming from my general direction in the world... well, consider it a sign! My brain probably exploded.

________

Update: actually, I think I'm going to discuss and possibly decline doing some of the stuff the administrator wants the PFA to do... they seem too "administrative" for a parent organization...

Very good article

Great article about new changes to the Church Handbook of Instruction.

I wonder how long it will take for these things to "trickle down". And apparently I need to check and see if our Activities Committee is still in effect (since I'm on it).

Hmmm I just may have to make an appearance.

Telling Stories

Goober decided to read a story to his siblings this morning! :) So glad his reading skillz are getting better and that he is getting more confident.

In other news: They were supposed to have school Monday and Tues but it's been canceled due to potential weather narstys...

Also... I made out like a bandit... you know that couponing thing? Ya well take THIS:

$25.90... oh, and I forgot to include a fifth bottle of dish soap in there... yup, once in a while I DO figure the stuff out. :)

Oh No, what did I get myself into?

Somehow I've ended up being the PFO (think PTO) President at a brand new school without any experience in anything PTO ever....

AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

PS, this happened today.

A Great Picture of an Awesome man :)

This is my dad. He's a pretty great guy in my book.

This picture is one of the best I have seen of him in a while... it catches his thoughtfulness and his caring nature and for some reason just generally makes me feel loved. Probably because I have many memories of him observing those he loves with this expression on his face.

He is truly an amazing man! He's always busy thinking up something new and then figuring out how to make it work... or thinking of how to fix something or what to do next. He has more ambition, courage, and drive in his pinky finger than I do in my whole body.

I love you dad.

Family

(a decent picture of all of the grand kids on Jer's side with Grandma S)

PS. Remember to do your homework and go vote today!!!

Yes, I'm a slacker!

Okay, so lets catch everyone up! We took the kids to the pumpkin patch and let them pick out pumpkins before Halloween. Actually it was the weekend before. We had never been to that one but the kids really enjoyed it!
  There was a couple of straw mazes, one big and one small.

Goober liked the small one best because "I didn't like getting lost." hmmm isn't that the point of a maze? :)

Anyhow, the kidlets had fun!

A while ago, if you remember, we tried out a dog. The kids were pretty bummed when it didn't work out... and I promised them we would get something else because apparently Jer and I aren't dog people.

So we headed to the pet store and picked up these:

That would be Fluffykins and Jimmy our new Dwarf hamsters! They are pretty fun, the kids adore them and they are containable so I don't have to worry about them digging up the backyard or me stepping in poop.

This is where they live:

On Thursday I went and helped out at the kids school!  It was enjoyable, I spent the morning helping out with Missy's class and then the afternoon in Goobers class. It was really nice to see how they interacted with the other kids and that they weren't the targets of any bullies.

In fact on of the girls in Goobers class asked me if I was Goobers mom, to which I replied "yes". She then proceeded to tell me that I was nice and that Goober was really nice too :)

Halloween went well, though I didn't really know what to expect with it falling on a Sunday. I have to admit though that I really had kinda hoped that there would be a few kids that came around on Sunday... oh, well. It IS Idaho. :) My kids had fun never the less!

and we kept their pumpkins lit both days :)

Math!

Okay, I admit as a kid I did say I didn't like math... probably because all the other girls said they hated math. But honestly, I liked it. No one could mark an answer wrong if it was right... very black and white.

Goober likes math too. For homework each night we are supposed to do reading for 15 minutes and "math facts" for 5 minutes. I bought him a workbook because I'm bad at remembering to HAVE him do math, let alone think up things for him to do. I should have probably just bought him flashcards, but he really seems to enjoy his workbook.

This is the page he did today:

yes, it is counting by twos, but it's really BIG numbers (for him) and Jer and I were able to help the logic click for him as far as when to change the bigger numbers.

 999
 +_1
1000

with all of the "carry the one over here... and add it to here...."s

Now, I have to admit, I don't know where the rest of the worlds 7 year olds are at... but I was pleased he was able to figure it on his own after a bit! You should have seen him beaming! :)

I'm glad he likes math! I would hate to have to fight him not only on reading but math too...

Recalls Ugh

Has everyone else noticed the insane number of recalled toys lately?

Really, it's an insane amount of toys and kid products. The screwy thing is, many of these toys AREN'T DANGEROUS. No kidding.

Turbo's trike is on recall.

I'm sure you all have seen little trikes like his. The reason for the recall? The "key" is "dangerous".

The "key" mind you is a small yellow piece that is permanently attached to the front of the trike right below the handlebars. It doesn't poke out very much, in fact it's shaped like a cresent, so in effect it feels more like a little smooth bump when you run your hand from the body of the bike over the key to the handlebars.

The only way that key is "dangerous" is if the kid is jumping into the bike with all he's got, or if the child is standing on the trike and falls onto it (the bike itself is dangerous to fall on!). In both cases, it's a matter of the kid doing things that they should know are going to hurt them. If you know your kid is likely to do something like that... maybe you should keep a good eye on your kid? NOT sue the company for you or your kids stupidity.

Now, honestly, I don't think parents are suing companies over things like that. I think LAWYWERS are suing companies on behalf of the parents. ie class action lawsuits. And who is benefitting? Lawyers. Because with class action lawsuits the people hurt don't actually get much. But at least companies are held responsible when they do something wrong... especially when there is no way for an individual to have enough to funds to even get the companies attention... right?

Yeah, so what happens when the lawyers get greedy and start throwing leagal threats around like it's a free meal ticket?

Ya, the companies start recalling everything simply to try to keep their names clean... dangerous or no. Parents start ignoring many of the recalls because many of them are only there because people are blatantly using the product WRONG! Companies start refusing to make toys for certain age groups and the hardship of finding toys for a 2 year old becomes that much HARDER.

And what happens when a recall is actually done because the product really is dangerous? How much of a red flag is that recall going to elicit?

Grrrr.

Roomie Reunion

Okay, so about a week ago I went to my college Roomie Reunion.

We try to get together every 4 years or so, last time was in Park City and we rented a condo, it was a bit of a challenge because everyone was at such different stages in life.

This time was definitely easier, because while we all have very different lives, we all have grown up and matured to the point that we can have discussions about just about anything. Not feel left out if someone decides to have a one on one conversation with someone else, and even gotten to the point that all of us made sure we each got a chance to talk one on one with each other... therefore catching up on each others lives a lot better and a lot more intimately. And not only that, we all tried to be conscious of how each other might feel and tried our best not to make each other uncomfortable... though I'm sure that still happened a couple of times.

We stayed at an aunts vacation house in Heber... it was beautiful and was such a blessing. It helped to keep cost down so that 5 out of the 6 roommates could attend (we definitely missed the 6th... but living in the east definitely makes it harder to come out west... especially on short-ish notice). The house was immaculate and we tried our best to leave it spotless and tidy when we left for our own homes once again.

We stayed up late talking and playing games, and at one point freaking out because of a random "bump" in the night (and accidentally setting off the house alarm! But we got it shut off quickly enough).

 (And yes, we actually used the headlamp and the ski poles(?) to go downstairs and check the unfinished basement for shady creepy stalker type people...)

We each took care for providing a meal and only ate out once (though the little cafe had wonderful food!) and we went to a very quaint coffee shop that used to be a full service gas station back in the days... they even had the old 1950's gas pumps out front!  We sat and talked outside until I got a sunburn... IN OCTOBER!! It was fabulous! I regret having ever doubted I would have fun...

(me and my absent roomie... and yes I'm aware that I don't pout very attractively... and yes, the absentee roomie is rather short so my arm is intentionally kinda low... MISSED YOU!!!)

Next time I really hope that our missing roomie can make it. We missed her.

(There, that's a better picture of me!)

Goober

Is growing and changing. In fact in the last month alone I have noticed a marked difference in how he approaches life. He thinks more... he considers.

Just the other day after I came home from my "Roomie Reunion" (which was great fun, by the way) my husband informed me that when Goober received some snacks to take home and enjoy, from Grandma and Grandpa J, he saved them for the next morning... and even then, only ate one and saved the rest for later in the weekend.

As he slowly went through the weekend his treats slowly disappeared, while his siblings ate theirs all with relish after only one night of sleep.

Just yesterday, after being outside mowing the lawn, I came inside to grab a grocery sack to gather some of the carrots that I have planted in the garden. They are, after all, getting quite big...

as I trudged up the stairs and into the kitchen, Goober popped out from the bottom of the stairs and exclaimed: "Mom! Your going to be so happy! I'm cleaning out the 'Little Room'!" Which is where we have been keeping all of our toys recently... under the stairs. In fact I've been thinking I really do need to go through it all because if I'm not careful we are going to end up with a load of spiders and their little families in there.

After he had finished and showed me his work (insisting that I "close my eyes" until I was right were I could see it all) I was really, really pleasantly surprised! He did a fabulous job! Before the cleaning has commenced, I (being an adult who didn't want to step on any toys) couldn't even get into the little room, and now the kids could play in their again if they wanted!

Goober was so proud! And so, of course, was I!

I Don't

When I tell you how I feel,
When I say what I think,
or how I see things...
I'm not forcing my opinion.

I don't need you to agree with me.
It would be nice, but honestly...
are the best conversations when everyone agrees?
Nosomuch.

Really, all I want is for you to
understand,
for you to put yourself in my shoes.
That's it, nothing more.

Missy Minus Training Wheels

 

 So Missy had me take off her training wheels last week... what's funny is that she is usually more of a risk taker than Goober, but for whatever reason she didn't want to try riding her bike sans training wheels for very long and soon asked me to put them back on. I was a mean mom and refused to reattach them (she could totally ride without training wheels she just lacked the confidence!)

After she got a bit of a grip about that she soon found that, sure enough, mom might have a clue what she is talking about! lol And she is once again following her big brother all over the neighborhood looking for friends who are home to play with!

On an unrelated note, Jer and I finally got the playhouse stained! Yes, it took all summer for us to get to it, and no we did not intend to wait until October to do it! But alas it is done before the snow flies! Yippy!

 

 (it's not done well, mind you, but it is protected from the weather, which is what we were worried about!)

Squeeeeee!!!

This was on the front page of the sports section today in our local paper... is it just me or does this guy look like he just saw an icky bug? Squeeeeeee!!!! ROFL

Couponing

So I decided recently to try "couponing" ... which has to be a sort of hobby, because if it's not... well, you won't stick with it. I can tell you that!

Jer has a coworker who has offered to answer any questions I have and who also referred me to a friendly couponing blog from this area of the world. I also am aware of a couple of other people that I know who coupon... but whom I don't want to bug the living snot out of! (I'd rather annoy a stranger than incite friends to become strangers due to my pestering!)

So I got started, I ordered the newspaper (because those suckers have a load of coupons in the Sunday edition) and found that as I ordered it they have a "couponers special" which includes 5 (FIVE!!!) Sunday papers. Now, for those of you that don't coupon and think I have lost some marbles, couponers get as many coupons as they can so that if they find a sale on an item, have a store coupon, AND a manufacturers coupon... well, then they can buy more than one item for the steal of a deal!

So I printed, printed, printed coupons off of the internet and started clip, clip, clipping... and did more clipping... and more. Needless to say, I was tired of clipping. But here is something that is encouraging! I won't have to clip that much again all at once if I can keep on top of the most current coupons as they pop up. considering I am just starting I was printing off about a months worth of online coupons at one time! Yikes.

Anywho, wish me luck! Hopefully I can figure all of this out without too many faux pas... and hopefully I can save a load of money in the process.

We shall see.....

Usually...

I'm not able to blow my nose. I'm not really sure way...

Maybe it's because the passages from inside my head aren't conducive to it, however they do allow me to sniffle effectively.

Within the last couple of days though I've actually been able to blow my nose. Probably due to the large amount of crud stuck in my noggen!

I have a sinus infection. Never had one before that I can remember...

They suck.

Apology for Prop 8

Elder Marlin Jensen apologized for Prop 8.

Interesting to say the least.

I'm sure it took a great deal of love and courage for him to say that... even if the apology was a personal one and not an institutional one. To seemingly step out of line with the opinion that the Church seems to be putting forward could cost him dearly, but I'm glad he did it. Even if all it accomplishes is showing people that holding your own opinion separate from the Church is not an indication that a person is "evil" in some way.

You may be surprised how many people are vilified, and their testimonies questioned (even if they are strong testimonies... I know a few liberal Mormons who are constantly having people question their faith) for being in disagreement on political issues.

Anyhow, thought some of the rest of you might be interested.

Ummm Fail?

Anyone else find this amusing? :D This is literally a page from a packet of benefits paperwork that Jer received from work... doesn't writing on a page, then render that page no longer "blank"?

Maps that Entertain!

I had a Facebook friend recently link these maps and I found myself cracking up... I love the stereotypes that Americans put on different countries... IT'S SO TRUE! :)

Anyhow... here is the link and here is a link if you want to look at a bigger version!

Happy Us!

Happy 9th Anniversary sweetheart!... how I ever lucked out enough to get a guy like you I will probably never know...

XOXOXO,
    Yur Wifee

Dog

Nope, dog didn't work out... Turbo is too young apparently... or maybe we just aren't "dog people"... not really sure, just know it wasn't going to work. He was a pretty good dog though...

SCHOOL!!!

So Saturday was the schools openhouse :) And then today Goober and Lissy took off for the big first day!

And yes, I'm aware that these don't look much like "first day" pictures... I think it's the lack of backpacks, but HEY no backpacks means no daily homework... and I'm ALL FOR that! :)

And in other recent news, we are "trying out" a dog for a couple of days. Here, meet Whiskey... he's a mutt, but a pretty nice one and he isn't going to grow any more... I do have to brush him and if we keep him I'm going to have to cut his hair too. Sooooo we shall see....

Only 4 more days....

Until the kidlets go to school! I love them to death and honestly I'm used to having them around by now (you know, summer and all that jazz), but their friends went back to school a couple of weeks ago which leaves my kids somewhat bored with each other....

Which leads to bickering and other expressions of boredom.

So, needless to say, I'm ready for school to start. It starts Monday and while I'll be sad to have so much less time with Goober, it will be nice to have a little respite from the fighting.

I'm looking forward with some one on one time with Turbo and a little bit of freedom to do things. After all, it is MUCH easier to load up one kid than it is to convince all three to go run errands with me! And this year I don't have to worry about homework (outside of reading for 15 minutes a day) because of the style of school they are going to go to.

At first Goober was upset that he wouldn't be getting a new backpack... then when I told him that he didn't need one because he wouldn't have any homework he yelled "YES!!!! NO HOMEWORK!!!"

Ya, I think that won him over... hopefully the actual school will win him over as well!

I'm also looking forward to the school schedule, while I've been getting the kids up at the school time this last week, it is taxing because they are tired and then I don't have a designated place to take them to so I get to deal with the "tireds". Hopefully they will adjust enough by next week to not be total pains to their teachers.

Anyhow... that is what has been up with me lately. I would have posted sooner about something in the news, or thoughts, or SOMETHING! But my brain is fried from getting up early to exercise and get the kids up, the news has been slow and pretty boring to me lately, and frankly I can't think of anything else to post!

PS we had our family pictures retaken on Tuesday... I'm excited to see how they turn out :)

Click, Take a Pic!

So Goober has finally bothered to figure out the Lincoln Logs... wondered when that would happen :)

Skipping Services

For a while now our family hasn't attended any church services. I think that most of this has to do with the fact that I no longer believe in the LDS Church (which is where we always used to go), though I have to be clear... I'm not opposed to going to the ward.

I was talking with a family member a while ago about this and mentioned that Jer and I had come to an agreement. I would come to the ward every other time we went to any service, and I would help him the the kids etc, if I was allowed to go to another congregation the rest of the time. I asked him if he would please come with me when I went, mostly so that I would be able to talk about the services without having to do a "play-by-play", he was amicable to that.

When I recapped a recent conversation between Jer and I with this family member, One were I made clear to Jer that if he was more adamant about wanting to go to the ward, which he hasn't been, then I would be more adamant about making sure I went to another congregation. He stated that honestly if I were more set on going to another congregation, he would then be more insistent on going to the ward. Both of us shared the opinion that if one view was exclusively shared with our children, we would want them to have a counterpoint.

In response to my conveying these ideas, the family member I was talking to stated "So, your discouraging him from attending the ward?"

Now, this family member is LDS and I have to admit, I understand where they would want to fault me for Jer's inactivity... I am, after all, the one that is doomed (according to their beliefs) but I find it somewhat interesting that they don't see it the other way as well... that Jer is "discouraging" me (and the kids) from going to another congregation as well. I figure that our family is more important than what may happen after this life... and if being tolerant of each others religious beliefs is necessary to help our family run smoothly, then that is fine with me. It really is a small price to pay when it comes to the people I love dearly, which my husband is no small part of.

What's amusing to me is the fact that I'm not really discouraging anyone to do anything religion-wise. I'm just no longer the one that makes sure everyone gets out of bed and dressed to the nines. Church is no longer important to me... if it's important enough to Jer then he will make sure that we all get up and out the door, or at least make a really good effort towards that. I'm not discouraging, I'm just no longer encouraging. I'm sitting firmly in the middle... though I have to admit, I don't know if the kids "church clothes" even fit them anymore, I kind of think not.

So for now we are considered "inactive" at church. We are not attending any church. Isn't "inactive" better than "not a member" to those that adhere to the LDS belief system? And on the flip side (from my point of view), isn't "inactive" better than only sharing one sects opinions on life with my children? I do, after all, want my children to always use their intellect when deciding what they think about things... and that includes God.

I don't want them to ever just "take someones word for it" when it comes to their belief system, I did that for far too long and I think if I had really thought about my beliefs sooner I probably would have been more likely to retain the belief system I was raised with, as it is, I'm don't... I want my children to believe things because it feels right to them, not because someone tells them it is right.

The Fair

So Wednesday we went to the fair... even though Jer and I both felt kind of cruddy (DANG sore throats, headaches, and fevers!) but at least the narsties decided to be somewhat mild while we took ourselves and the kids to the fair... which we had be promising to do all summer. Granted it was mostly to keep them from begging to go to Riot Zone every time we passed it on the way to Gma and Gpa J's house, but the fair is one of the great things about Eastern Idaho in the Fall!

I forgot my camera... go figure. But at least the face painting lady took pictures for her website, so I got the cool pictures of the kids faces!

We got to the Fair at about 10:30 in the morning, got to tell the kids the rides didn't start until 1pm, so we got to look at the animals and the "adult" stuff in the morning and then have a relaxing lunch, THEN go attack the rides.

All of the kids seemed to have a blast at the Fair and Turbo was begging us to go back the next day :) He wanted his face painted again and he LOVED the rides! I think the wristbands were a win all the way around!

I think next year we will probably do it this way again... though hopefully with less of "The Cruddies" going around.

"Motherload"

"Motherhood has ruined me for life.

I want to nurse the world
A continent to a breast.

I want to cut up waffles
For all the third world
Send the dictator to his room
Ground the drug dealers
Wash out the pornographers'
Mouths with soap
And spray organized crime
With Black Flag.

I want to make all the politicians
And all the executives sit on the couch
And memorize the golden rule
And stand up and say it in unison.

I want to grab a bullhorn
And announce to the world
That the barbecues will stop
Until all the litter - all the litter -
Has been picked up.

Oh, I could fix everything
If they would all just listen to me,
Listen to me,
Listen to me!

I have such illusions of grandeur:
I am a mother."

- by Carol Lynn Pearson

SUNFLOWERS!

Ahhhhh Our Sunflowers are blooming! And I even have REAL bees on them... not those pesky wasps, though I have to admit, I don't mind the wasps because they are eating the aphids and therefore leave my children alone (whom have been warned to leave the sunflowers ALONE).

This picture was taken from on top of our deck, the sunflower itself is taller than I am! :) I've never done any kind of garden before so I'm happy to have something turn out well, and the fact that Goober brought the seeds home from school last spring is an added bonus.

Now I just need to research what I'm supposed to DO with the darned things!

Alrighty then

So, an update.

My right lung is inflamed. Wah-oo... (can you feel the love?) the doctor seems to think from something I inhaled.

I asked him why the left one isn't also if that is the case... the answer? "Possibly because your left lung is more efficient at coughing". hmmmm that makes some sense at least.

He seems to be of the opinion that my lung is inflamed due to something environmental, and that it hasn't been able to heal up properly, therefore the repeat episodes of coughing up blood. So to help it be able to heal up right he has put me on Steroids.... (ROID RAGE!!!!!)... well, actually an inhaler with steroids in it, for 8 weeks.

Hopefully that will be the end of that. Tada!

Red Light!

So on Friday we went to my parents house to celebrate my mom's birthday (which is actually today). The kids had a blast, sang "Happy Birthday" to Grandma at the tops of their lungs and slightly off key, eat cake and ice cream, and then Grandpa decided to teach them "Red Light, Green Light".... which I was surprised that Goober didn't know from school. They have been begging Jer and I to play it with them since, and have resorted to trying to play it in our small room downstairs in adverse weather lol

On a totally unrelated note, I've been suffering with the beginnings of depression again. Grrrr. Hate that stuff, and hate the meds that go with it. Darned criminal pharmaceutical companies! At least my family understands though... seeing as most of them have suffered with it at one time or another. This would also probably be the reason that I haven't been posting as much recently... aka little to no drive.

Thank goodness I have the worlds best husband! Look! I can even prove it!

What a doll.

Perspective Is a Funny Thing!

So tonight I did a Neighborhood Watch BBQ.

Last time I did one I was really discouraged and thought that if I didn't get more of a turnout this time I would just stop doing them all together.

Perspective is a funny thing though.

Last time we did the BBQ on a weekend and I felt like few people showed up because they really weren't that supportive.

This time we had fewer people, but I wasn't nearly as put out... why? Because it was a weeknight (I know some people work later etc), school is starting soon (aka "Ahhhhh I forget to buy my kid a backpack!!!"), and fall coming soon ("holy crap... I need to start thinking about Halloween Costumes already!").That and some of the faces we saw there where new, so that was encouraging!

And maybe it also had a bit to do with the fact that there's not expected to be another neighborhood thing until Spring...

Yeah, that could be part of it too. :) Oh, and the fact that we finally raised enough funds to get some signs put up... YAY!

Today and a Linky

Okay, so I went in for the Bronchoscopy and there is good news and bad news.

Good News: They didn't find anything.

Bad News: They didn't find anything.

Well, at least I knew I'm not dying. I have an appointment with the doctor on the 2nd to go over stuff, more updates then. I hope he is able to answer some questions, because I would like to know "what now" for the next time I start coughing up blood... I really don't want to have to go through all that again.

On to another topic... my favorite! :) Here is an awesome post about one women's experience with how women are viewed from different cultures. I think it puts things into a good perspective.

Enjoy!

Sorry I've been slacking.

I've been remarkably tired lately... and when I'm not and think "I should do a blog post" I then immediately think "about what?!" lol

So here is what has been up with me. This Tuesday I get to go in for my Bronchoscopy, something that has made my exercise streak die quickly :( Sucky, right when I get used to it too! (Now to muster the will power to start it all back up again!) Then later that day I get to take Missy to the eye doctor...

I'm kind of wondering what to think about that one... I mean, when we went to the pediatrician for the annual exam they tried to get her to tell them the letters on the wall. Now, if any of you knew Missy, you would know she can be a bit flaky. Be that because that is in her personality, or because she is five, I don't really know... nor care for that matter. She's cute and I love her! But it does make it difficult to tell if she is intentionally answering wrong, or if she just doesn't care enough to answer right... OR that she really can't see very well.

So I made sure to make her an appointment with a pediatric eye doctor here in town so that (hopefully) we can rule out the "flakys" as the reason she didn't do well at the pediatricians eye test.

Thursday I get to go to an orientation for Missy's Kindergarten class... which should be interesting, but I'm not really sure if I should take her with me or not... and then that same night I'm doing a neighborhood BBQ in front of my house.

I put out fliers yesterday but apparently the post man decided he needed to take some of them when he came around for the mail. YES... I know.... I shouldn't be putting fliers in mailboxes... But what would you do if you had 300 fliers to deliver and didn't want to spend all day doing it? I'm sorry Mr. Mailman, but you of all people should know how much more time that takes... and the fact that I'm not getting paid to deliver these things kind of makes me think... Meh! Mailboxes look good!

Besides, I don't think I will be doing another neighborhood watch activity for a while... if the neighborhood wants to put together something before next spring someone else can do it, especially if the turnout to this event is low. One meeting a year is starting to look really good about now...

Goober has a new friend he has found... Mr A is a neighborhood kid that grates on Jer's nerves like nothing else lol  He also is almost 10 years old, which concerns me in some ways. I wonder if he wants to play with Goober because Goober has video games or because he really likes Goober. So today I told Goober he gets to play video games for 2 hours... and those hours are not when friends are here.

Goober didn't like that much, but I really don't know how else to test the reasons for why this kid is around. His little sister is Missy's age though... and the girls get along well and nothing seems amiss there.

We will see what happens when the neighbor kids all go back to school on the last day of this month. I'm a little worried about my own kids boredom though, they aren't starting school until Sept 20th... I may see what I can do doing a review of the things they know so that they aren't so rusty when school starts. I have to admit that as far as reading with Goober and practicing letters with Missy I've been a horrid mother this summer... so I should probably be trying to do some make up work! :)

I haven't been watching the news much due to too little good news. Most of the news related things I think about tend to be things like "Oh great, Iran with Nuclear power... sounds bad... wow, isn't bad what is normal in the news?" So I scan the headlines and call it good lately. No deep thoughts there.... and I haven't been reading my regular blogs much either due to the major blogs recently being inundated with butt heads. What is up with that?!

Oh! Speaking of blogs, Jer and I went down to UT last week to meet up with some of my favorite bloggy people. We left the kids with Jer's mom and took a detour through Bear Lake to pick up one of the ladies :) It's so nice when you meet people you get along well with! It's funny how much you can have in common with people you have only talked to online!

Anywho, That is that I guess...

Oh, and here's a picture... just for kicks and giggles... 

 You would be amazed at how much fun kids can have with a hose and a slide :)

Holy School Supplies Batman!

What in the WORLD am I going to do when I have THREE kids in school....

Is it just me, or does everyone think that a swanky job would be public school administration? I mean, come ON... that MUST be where the tax money goes... since it isn't getting to the teachers....  

Now, as to why that same tax money can't buy copy paper for the copying machine or tissues (which I don't even keep around my own home.... TP anyone?) for the classrooms gets kind of frustrating.

I mean, sheesh, here pretty quick the Tax cuts from several years ago will expire and most likely we will end up with new taxes to try to balance the national budget. I don't know where I'm going to get the money for supplying the whole school with office supplies!

Sooooo

I went to the ENT this morning. I was the first appointment of the day....

And I waited an hour before the guy actually came in, THEN he took a call on his cell phone within a minute of coming in and walked right back out the door. With anyone else I would have said something... but obviously I want this guy to do something for me, so I don't really want to piss him off. I understand if he was on call at the hospital and was that late, but from what I have heard he is always late (along with many of the professionals in his field).

Why is it that doctors seem to think you should value their time, but when it comes to it being the other way around... Nope, you're not important enough, even though you pay the bills.

Here are my solutions:

Phone issue: When you are on call at the hospital, make sure they text you. That way you can glance at your phone, get the message, finish up with your patient and be on your way.

Tardiness: As far as being routinely an hour or more late... if you want to start your day later, THEN DO IT, but don't make appointments for times that you aren't willing to be there. If you have to, then make sure your family knows to get you out the door on time. If you are over 15 minutes late I say the office should give out $15 Wal-Mart gift certificate for every 15 minutes they are late.... ei an hour would equal $60 in goods and the insurance wouldn't be the one benefiting, it would be the customer for their wasted time.

Anyhow, he stuck an obnoxious little wire thingy up my nose (it was a scope) and then down to my voice box. I almost gagged. Yay for prodding of the orifices. They didn't find anything except that it looked like I have a little reflux and inflammation... nothing that would cause me to cough up blood.

So they scheduled a bronchoscopy (where they stick the evil wire down in your lungs and look around) for the 24th. Basically they want to rule out the big nasties (aka cancer) first... even if it does seem unlikely.

So now I'm on an antibiotic, and anti-inflammation, and reflux meds.

And we wonder why the pharmaceutical companies have so much power in our government! Gafah!

Prop 8

No one cares what I think so I won't go into it. LOL Everyone else has already hashed it out pretty well. I DO think that this provides a good counterpoint though... I thought that the argument was well thought out.

They Called.

Well, I have the start of pneumonia (or some other infection) and they still don't know what is causing it so I'm being referred to an Ear Nose and Throat Doctor. They are putting me on antibiotics until I can get in with him.

*crickets*

Still haven't heard what the MRI results are. Which I guess is good.... it means I'm not going to die within the next 24 hours, but it's bad in that we still don't know what is going on and I want them to call me back dangit so that we can schedule whatever else needs to be done to figure this crap out.

Grrrr.

Maybe I could offer to work for them once a week or so, just calling people back who have "normal" test results. hmmmm

Artsy Fartsy FTW (For the win!)

Okay, so this morning I'm probably either racing to get my kids ready and off to their Grandma S's house or I'm already at my MRI to see what is going on. But while we are waiting I will update you on my weekend!

Quite a while ago my mom invited me to go with her to the Park City Arts festival. She has been going annually for over a decade! Up until this year she went with her mom, but due to some unfortunate events that is no longer possible, so she invited me.

We left on Friday and headed down to Salt Lake. While there we stopped to drop off some things to my Grandpa K and to visit :)

It was so good to see him! Even if he wouldn't let me get a picture of him doing "brain surgery" aka pretending to shove his pinky finger all the way up his nose while pulling a hilarious face. That stunt always brings back good memories of when I was little.... that and him "Growling"... such a ham! I love him so much and his sense of humor always has me laughing.

(He and my mom making a "pinky promise" about something.... hmmm my memory must be going!)

After visiting with "Grumpy" and going out to dinner with him we headed to our hotel for the night.

The next morning we headed up to Park City to attend the Arts Festival.. or the "Kimball Arts Festival" for those of you that are picky. :)

The art there is so cool! This rooster was part of a group of other motion sculptures... each of the heads would nodd in the wind. I loved how this ones body wasn't a solid color, but instead had texture to it.

Mom bought me a really fun hat that I'm totally going to wear to death:

My mom and I are of the opinion that these pictures we are standing in front of could totally be done by my machinist of a dad!

(See dad.... you could totally do those!)

I loved looking at all the different types of art! They sooooo make me want to try my hand at art again... even though I am sorely out of practice and would probably be disappointed in my lack of skill... even then, I want to learn how to weld at least!

I mean... how many cool things could I make!!!! Funfun! 

Okay, so maybe I'm a little ambitious... I admit... but aren't these things so cool to see? Turbo has asked me to play this one over and over again. :) Maybe I can convince Jer to let me build a shop out back? hmmmm maybe not, not enough space :( And then there's that whole... I don't know how to weld thing...

And yes, there was "normal" paintings there too... this one totally made me think of my boys! batman: check, Light saber: check, big wheel: check....

So fun!

Sorry.

Last week I didn't post as ALL. I had intended to, but first off, I didn't have much to say on Monday and didn't feel like anyone (myself included) would appreciate it if I just posted some random crap that no one (myself included) really cared about :)

Turbo turned 3 last Wednesday. He enjoyed the cake I made him and tried to hide in embarrassment with everyone sang "Happy Birthday" to him... and of course he made out like a bandit as far as gifts. The kid loves anything reptilian... what can I say?

 He loves everything he got... and I'm glad I was able to be there.

Earlier that day I had started coughing up blood. Scary. But at least not as scary as it could have been. In February I had had a small experience with coughing up blood that only lasted a couple of minutes. But because it unnerved me so much I went the to doctor who had an X-ray and a D timer done, which came out normal. I had figured it was a fluke.... since sometimes weird things happen that can't be explained. They told me to call if it happened again. Which it didn't, until Wednesday.

So because I didn't die last time I figured I would be okay until I could get into the doctor this time.

Thursday morning I went into the doctor who was concerned. She said that other than coughing up blood (which I was still doing) I had no symptoms, which was odd. And because she doesn't like unexplained things and she tends to be proactive she ordered an MRI for Monday. She also gave me permission to still go to Utah on Friday night... so I did.

Anyhow, we will see what all happens come Monday.

A day with the Girls... and Turbo :)

So yesterday was fun. It was the last day that I got to see my nepheice for a while. My dad was going to take my nephiece up to go off roading on his Rhino, but alas Miss Thang had hurt her back the night before and he didn't want her to get hurt worse. So he ended up taking Qwerty and Goober instead and the girls got to hang out... well, the girls and Turbo!


So my mom took us to get ice cream at Sub Zero (which I'd never been to before). It was really cool, the guy working there explained that when they used liquid nitrogen to freeze the ingredients he had to make sure it touched all of the ingredients or some of them would be warm instead of the general thought that it would be frozen hard in one spot and then get gradually warmer. We got to pick our own ingredients and add in whatever. Worker Man even showed us how if you drop the liquid nitrogen onto the counter top it beads up and rolls off, we could touch it and everything but it wouldn't get us wet, just really cold. The kids loved the evaporation that looked a lot like what dry ice creates! Very cool.

After he was done cooking the ice cream (cause technically that's what he did, the nitrogen was boiling after all and turning back into gas) we sat down and ate it. Yummmmmmy! I'm a big fan of ice cream.

(Turbo at the theater)

We headed over to the theater across the road and saw "Despicable Me" which was really cute! We saw it in 2D, but I'm sure if you went with kids that would keep the glasses on it would be amusing. There were a lot of parts made especially for 3D, like a roller coaster ride and a paddle ball type part.

We headed home (to my parents house) afterword and hung out waiting for the boys to get back.

The kids played, we had dinner, Jer showed up, we talked,... where are the boys? We called Grandpa's cell phone and didn't get an answer, mom left a message, we waited some more, the kids played some more, grandpa called...

Turns out that the Rhino broke down while they were out and they had to hike back to the truck. Thank goodness there were three of them cause Goober didn't make it all the way. Apparently they were out about two and a half miles and after a mile or so it was apparent he didn't have the stamina to make it all the way. So Goober and Qwerty sat down and waited while my dad went the rest of the way and got the truck to go get them and the broken down Rhino. Now they had over an hours drive to get back to my parents house...

And it was getting late, so Jer and I said "Goodbye" to Miss Thang (assuming we wouldn't be seeing her again because both her and Qwerty were supposed to be dropped off at their other grandparents house) and headed home so that we could get our other children in bed.

By ten pm Goober was dropped off and those of us that were still up said  our "goodbyes" to the nephiece.

I love those kids, and I love spending time with them. I know I keep saying this, but they are awesome!

Details

Okay, so trampolines can get you hurt.

I think most people understand that. The thing was, that Miss Thang didn't hurt herself falling off of the thing or doing the pogo-stick with her head... she got hurt when Qwerty went to "bounce" her high in the air. What kid hasn't done that on a trampoline? Heck I was the mother of all chickens and I did that all through my growing up years. And when I say the "mother of all chickens" I mean it. I have never broken a bone etc etc due to it. In fact I didn't even have the satisfaction of telling people I could do a front flip on the trampoline (which my parents bought when I was seven) because I was freaked out that I would land on my head and bust my neck.

Anyhow, back to Miss Thang.

I didn't see what happened. All I knew was that I came outside and my kids were being demanding, Missy asked where Nepheice were and I looked over at the trampoline and saw Miss Thang laying on it. I thought I heard something but couldn't tell if it was crying or laughing or fake crying or what really. I figured Miss Thang and Qwerty were playing. Until Qwerty ran over and told me Miss Thang was hurt.

At which point I of course ran toward the trampoline to make sure she was breathing etc. She said her back hurt, that she had heard a pop, and that the pain seemed to be getting worse. I told Qwerty to run and get Gpa J, who then did his best to figure out how bad the injury was and proceeded to call their parents.

It's really hard to tell those kinds of things when you aren't around someone enough to know how they handle pain, when you don't know their different cries. We only see Qwerty and Miss Thang once a year or so due to them living out of state, and usually it's only for a day or two. I always miss them before they even leave and Jer rarely gets any time with them because work requires two weeks advanced notice to get days off. I really hope they don't think that we don't care about them enough to be willing to spend the time with them...

So back to what happened... My dad was able to get a hold of their dad, Whatshisbucket (who is in school to become a Physical Therapist, way cool, and way hard I'm sure! He graduates next year I think. I don't know him very well anymore but I hope to celebrate his graduation when it happens if he would be up for that. Who knows, I think he still may think of me as the obnoxious kid I was when he married my sister! Ha! Hell, distance and history really can choke on a gourd for all I care...) Anyhow, Whatshisbucket decided that we should get her in to be looked at ASAP. So dad --carefully, and at the suggestion of his EMT neighbor-- slid Miss Thang onto a piece of plywood and we loaded her into the back of my van (Yay! for Mommy-vans and seats that fold down so that the back area is flat!)

I did my best to avoid bumps and take turns slowly and we (My dad, me, and Qwerty) took her into town to get to the nearest ER. We found Jer waiting in the parking lot -- due to a phone message I had left -- and once the staff had safely gotten Miss Thang into the hospital Jer and I left to go tend to our own children, leaving Jer's car for them to get around with.

Meanwhile back at the hospital they did X-rays and an MRI. The X-ray didn't catch anything but the MRI found a small hairline fracture in one of her upper vertebra. They prescribed her some meds for pain etc and told her she could go home four hours after she arrived. Gotta love ER's timetables, eh?

I'm really glad she wasn't injured worse! It could have been much worse... though I'm sad that she was injured at all! I hope that she is careful with herself the rest of her trip here and that she doesn't try to go four wheeling or anything that might cause her more problems and I hope the Nephiece has a blast the rest of their time away from home even if that does include being cautious :)

(I realized today that Missy and Miss Thang have the same age difference as Me and Winders)

And Then...

Today was pretty awesome. Well, 'cept the end... ummm kinda.

This morning my kids went to their first swim lesson and then we went boating with my parents and my nephiece (which is to say, my niece and nephew, Miss Thang and Qwerty). They are seriously two of my favorite kids in the whole world!!

My kids had a blast swimming and riding on the boat and tubing. Yes, my nephiece took turns with my kids helping them on the tube :) They were Awe-some!

We ate lunch on the boat and generally had fun until the wind started to kick up...

After a long day of water fun we headed home and nepheice headed out to jump on the trampoline with a sprinkler under it for a while until my kidlets decided to have fun with the garden hose.

At which point, Miss Thang broke her back.

No kidding, cracked a vertebrae. I count our lucky stars... cause honestly, it could have been much, MUCH worse.

Relationships

I think I expect too much out of life sometimes. Mostly out of relationships. I can only think of maybe three relationships in my life that I'm satisfied with, and when I say satified I mean I don't think they could be better and if they do get better I would be pleasantly surprised.

My number one relationship is with Jer. Which is as it should be. I truly do think that we are two sides of the same coin. We rarely argue, and when we do it's usually because something is frustrating one or the other of us that has little to do with the person we are arguing with. ie I may be frustrated with the kids one day and Jer comes home and says something that usually wouldn't bug me, but because I'm already frustrated I let it bug me and off we go from there. He's an awesome dad and a wonderful husband. I could go on and on, but I won't cause that isn't what this post is about! :) The point is, our relationship is awesome and I don't think I could have found anyone who could truly "get" me as much as he does! Relationship with my hubby? A++

The second one is my relationship with my parents. Mom and I exercise together most mornings and often times my parents will drop by my house to see the kids and visit... usually about once every two weeks or so. My dad is more quiet and he works so getting together with him is a little harder simply because his schedule is a little less adjustable, but when I do get a chance to "hang out" with him I always enjoy it and he usually gets my mind running about one thing or another that I hadn't thought of before. Relationship with my parents? A++

The third relationship that I have that I'm quit satisfied with is that of my BFF Erika. I've known her forever and honestly she is probably closer to me than my own siblings. This is probably due to the rocks and roadblocks that have occurred within my relationships with my sisters. I would love to be close to them and I really try not to hold grudges, but past hurts sometimes still hurt. Erika and I can go for almost any length of time without talking and just pick up the phone and call, no reason, just to chit chat... and it's like we just talked last week... 'cept there's more things that have happened so therefore more things to talk about! We definitely see differently on a ton of things, but it makes for great conversations and not a dull moment :) And her family is way cute and she married a good guy... so what's not to love!? Relationship with Erika? A++

Besides that, like I said earlier, I think my expectations are too high. I hear about family that are waaaaay close. Sisters and bothers that talk to each other daily or cousins that hang out with each other all the time, and quiet frankly I'm jealous. I wish I had those too. But maybe those are the only close relationships that those people have. Maybe most people only have 2 or 3 A++ relationships? I'm not sure really. Would you say that is true?

I look around me and think "Man, wouldn't it be nice if ... " I was closer to my siblings, or I had a cousin I could talk to, or even an aunt. A grandparent? Someone who lives nearby? I get lonely to think there are so few people who really "get" me. Am I really so hard to "get"? Or do I unknowingly shut people out? I really don't try to.

Admittedly I know I rub some people the wrong way. If people are too much "black/white" or "right/wrong" thinkers I have a hard time with them. I try not to, but my world is full of grays... so it seems that they always want to lump me into one extreme or another, and I don't fit well in either group, and get irritated when people try to force me into one. Then again tolerance is something that I find indispensable.

Or maybe I'm just being too self analyzing... how many close relationships do you have?

Air Show

So, this morning I slept in (Thanks Jer!) and soon after I got myself out of bed - for fear that I would stay there all day - the phone rang.

Jer's mom was on the other end wondering if we wanted to go to the air show! Why, yes, of course we would like to go! The reason we hadn't planned on it was due to financial restraints... we can't have everything we want after all and unfortunately food for dinner is highly recommended on the priority list!

So we got ready and headed out, parking near the universities satellite campus and taking the shuttle into the airport. The kids were kinda of grumpy about waiting in line for the shuttle, which concerned me about the rest of the day.... If they were already grumpy, what might that indicate?

Especially when we were headed to a place with lots of walking and waiting? But they were actually pretty good considering that the lines for food were over an hour long and the sun was blazing!

They had their moments of grumpiness, namely when I told them they couldn't go into the bounce houses because the dude insisted on cash... sorry dude, but when I only had an hour from the time I found out were were going to the time I got here, that means no cash for YOU!

Thankfully I was able to distract the kids with cool helicopters and military vehicles that they could actually climb up and sit in!

Then of course there were the stunts and other performances!

The husband and wife, stunt pilot and wing walker :) Missy insisted after that they she was going to be a pilot and "drive planes"! I have to say, if she does do that I would be very proud, but worried like I should be as her mother :)

Then there was the Mustang and MAN was the plane maneuverable! The guy would tumble and turn and it looked like it reacted on the drop of a dime. So cool, if I became a pilot... that would be a plane I would want to fly!

 After all of that was the main attraction... the Marines Blue Angels! MMMMmmmmm Yum. Ya, I don't even have the words to describe how talented those pilots are. So glad that those guys are willing to serve their country... and thankful for their families as well!

How do I express how glad I am that we have men and women that are willing and able to do all that they do to help me and my family to feel safer? God bless them.