THE HESLOP HOUSE

Kids

2011-01-24T15:33:00.000-08:00

Kids say the darn dest things sometimes....makes me wanna hold up my " here's your sign" sign. So, the other day I promised Presley I would put some pink and purple streaks in her hair. She wanted me to do it too, so we did. My hair is too dark to have it show up much, but her's looked fantastic, and she loved it, which is what counts. Well, that night we were sitting around reading books and Presley was standing behind me looking through my hair trying to find the colors. She says,

" Mom, I don't see any purple or pink."

I say, " Well, it's there You just can't really see it."

Presley says, " no, I don't see any, where is it?"

I say, " well it's there. look hard.. I put some in."

Presley says, " I still don't see the purple mom.... oooh, But I see the white!"

I say...nothing.

The rest of the family laughs.

Lol, it's official, I'm growing old...and my three year old just proved it.

Lost

2010-12-28T09:13:00.000-08:00

Well, I have been waiting and waiting hoping I would not have to Post about this...at least not this way. But I have come to terms, finally, that Squeegie is not coming home. Squeegie has been a part of our family for nine years. We bought her when she was just a baby and have raised her ever since. I was hoping that when I had to post about this it would be because she had gotten old and passed away. The old part she was, but she ran away. So much harder to deal with I think. Death is something we have to accept, it will happen to everyone at some point in time, but running away...who does that? I feel awful. W e actually thought we found her once, someone picked up a dog looked just like her. I went to see, but it was not her. Then we scoured the shelter. I sent Brandon in cause the kids wanted to see the other animals, and i was feeding the baby. He came out a bit later and said I had to go in because there was a dog in there and he honestly couldn't tell if it was her or not. I thought aww crap, I'm gonna come unglued in the shelter. So I went in, walked passed all the kennels with sad eyes until the very end where this dog was. It took me a while, I had to do some searching, but in the end I determined it was not her. She had been missing for a month and her hair would have been long and probably dirty, but this dog didn't make the annoying, but cute little squeal our Squeegie always made when she wanted ur attention. And then I had to walk away in tears. People probably thought I was a nut.

I still have a hard time thinking she is dead. We live in the open wide country. We drove up and down the frontage roads, the freeway, the canals..everywhere. I was hoping to find her, even if it was that she got hit, at least that would be closure for me, but we found nothing. Come dark we drove around with a big spotlight calling her name....nothing. Squeegie was a very smart dog. If she heard us calling, she would have come.

She has been gone for 8 weeks now. I'm thinking someone saw her running up the road and thought she didn't belong to anyone out in the country, not exactly a country dog. I'm thinking someone picked her up thinking she was dumped off. I'm thinking someone has her. I have searched the country, the newspaper, and the shelter many times. When do I stop? I keep thinking she is gonna turn up. The most awful thing is Gus, her companion, is distraught. He sulks, pouts, sleeps, won't eat, and still constantly sits by the door..waiting. And when he goes outside, he sits on the lawn and stares out the direction she ran. Poor thing. All the extra treats in the world haven't helped him snap out of it. So, for my emotional sake I'm going to try to convince myself she went for greener pastures to pass from this life....ya know there is a movie like that, the dog goes to a nice quiet, pritty place to die. Perhaps there was just so much commotion going on here. I'd want to die in peace too.

She was a great dog. The most obedient dog I have ever owned. She has been on plenty of journey's with us. over a dozen moves, three more kids added to the family, and lots of love. She earned her spot in the family that's for sure. We miss her. We love her. And we will always have a special place for her.

2010-12-16T09:46:00.000-08:00

I have never been called the crafty kind, but I love doing them! I have a lot I have started, and a lot I have yet to finish, but here are a few I've worked on over the last several months. The kids loved helping with this one...and it was a perfect "kid" job too! Conner was pritty intense here. Here is the end result! A great find at a thrift store, some paint, and baskets at Burlington. We did the crib too! Now if only I could paint my white walls...My sister introduced me to a fabulous wood shop in Sandy, Utah. Tons and Tons of way cute stuff! So far I have done a Summer sign, and a Witch sign. It was way fun painting and decorating...and not so much fun sanding. :) I have two more signs too do. Better put my sanding face on.

I have also been doing burp rags. have done a few different styles, but these ones were my favorite! so soft. And this is my homemade valance. The picture is horrible and totally doesn't do it justice, so if u wanna make em, drop by and get a better look! It was fun, and super fast!

I have a few quilts I've started and stopped and I made a tu-tu for my neice, that was fun. I love getting on craft kicks, i feel like I just can't stop! Happy Crafting!

October 29, 2010

2010-11-07T12:01:00.000-08:00

Findlay Burke Heslop
7lbs. 9.8 0z
19 inches long

Perfect.

2010-10-13T14:00:00.000-07:00

We spent a couple of weeks on vacation this summer. All of my sisters were able to come into town for a week, and it's the first time in several years we have all been able to see each other, apart from two days for my sisters wedding. We took a day and rode up to Bear Lake, which as a child was a yearly tradition for my family. There was hardly any beach this year, but the water and the wave runners worked just the same :)

Here is Grandpa taking Presley and Kylee for a strole in the water.
This is Presley and Kylee, both three...both trouble makers...but cute ones.
Uncle James seems to be the clone for Conner. They look so much a like. Conner just loves hanging out with the big boys.
This is Conner's cousin Hunter.He was so cute. He would only sit on Conner's lap if he got tickled. We went to the Dinasour park, very much different from when I went years ago. Kids all had fun.

2010-10-05T11:59:00.000-07:00

Well, there's not much to say. So I'm just going to pretend my last post was not six months ago, and go on blogging like all the other faithful bloggers do. :) It has been an Extremely busy summer. So much has been done, so much happened, and so much to tell. So hopefully now that I have regained my rightful access to my blog I can start posting like crazy to get caught up! First off, we have Taylor and her cute cheerleading adventure. She pulled out my cheer stuff from way back when and all it took was one look at a pom pom and she was hooked. She really enjoyed doing the mini molahiettes, and it was a good experience for her.

The parade was super long, and ended in the dark, but she was a trooper all the way, even when her mother forgot to bring her jacket and also failed to think about putting a long sleeve shirt on her. Taylor was so cute. She just marched and danced and smiled.

And when it was all over, we got in the car, and turned around to ask her questions and she was out cold. Diva and all.

We also had some birthdays! Taylor turned six and six days later Presley turned three. We had a quick party for taylor before we left outta town, parties are sure a lot of work, and poor presley had her big day in the car on the start of our trip. She did get cupcakes eleven hours later upon arriving at Grandma's house, so I think all in all everything worked out.

This photo is just plain self explanatory...kids are just cute.

2010-03-20T18:55:00.001-07:00

There is a frog in my house...in my kitchen...and I cannot find it.
Every time I set my purse in its spot on the counter I hear it croak...
Do you think it might be in my purse????
Why would a frog be in any one's purse?
I take that back....a FAMILY of frogs could live in plenty in the bottom of my purse, and never starve I'm sure.

What's Going On

2010-02-08T13:06:00.000-08:00

Well, a lot has gone on lately. Just gonna briefly touch up on a few events. First off, who is spreading all the sickness??? I am hear to publicly request that you stop it...I am tired of all the sick people...in my house. With sick people comes a rare opportunity for me to stay home, I am indeed grateful for that. Staying at home is not a luxury I enjoy all the time, even when I'm home I'm working. So needless to say despite the decline in income over the last few weeks, I have enjoyed getting to know my "turf" again. So everyone got the flu...yes everyone, except Dad. Dad never seems to get sick except for headaches. So we had a week full of vomit, tears, coughs, belly aches, fevers, chills, dehydration and zombies. And of course this was spread out over the entire week, Gosh it would just be too easy to have everyone sick at exactly the same time. That would mean we would only have one day at the doctor instead of three and a few days of zombies instead of a week...funny how that works.

So a few things we got done while reminiscing in our sickness. First things first, girls got pedicures.

And manicures...been a long time and the five layers of touch up polish on my toes desperately needed to be removed and re applied.Taylor made it to a birthday party the week before. They did some fabulous face painting. She was way excited.
I have taken the opportunity to cook while at home with zombies. I actually like cooking, it just seems like whenever I get a cool new recipe something comes up and I don't have time to cook it. Or kids always seem to desperately need my attention when dinner making time rolls around. Excuses I know, but anyhow I have made a goal to try cooking with something new every week...or so. There are so many products out there that I have no idea what to do with or how to cook with, so I have decided to expand my cooking horizon.

This week I cooked a delicious recipe. It called for a Serrano hot pepper.

I have never used one of these, in fact I have never heard of it. It was easy to find in the produce department. It looks like a mini jalapeno. It was delicious. This recipe also called for hoisin sauce. I have seen this around, but always strayed from using it because I was unsure of the taste. I used it and it was great. The recipe I used was an Indian and Asian dish. It was good, didn't take too long to prepare and I think I'll cook it again!

Now off to the doctor, again. Presley has pneumonia and a wicked ear infection. Oh my goodness, where is the sunshine??

January

2010-01-18T16:53:00.000-08:00

January...The one month out of the year I simply dread. All the festivities are over and there is just plain nothing to do till summer...of which I long for. Oh I am definitely a heat person, and this rotten wet, muddy, cold, but no snow weather is really ruining a good start to my new year. Speaking of new year It has happened again...a new year. I know it's coming every time December rolls around, but there's just something about January and a new year that buggs... Oh yeah, it's the whole resolution thing. Now don't get me wrong I think making resolutions is a great idea. It gets people motivated, pumped about a goal, and for some reason everyone seems to be happy about it. But honestly, who actually keeps their resolutions??? O.k. probably most of you are good that way, but I can't think of one time I have actually kept a resolution all year and looked back on it at the end of the year and patted myself on the back. When December rolls around I always remember those nice resolutions but I tend to kick myself in the butt for not accomplishing them...instead of the old pat on the back. Last year I came up with the solution to my resolution problem. I simply would not make a resolution and then I would not have anything to be disappointed about. But in the end friends, I was just as disappointed that I had not accomplished much...or at least I didn't have that " I did something productive " feeling.

So this year I have waited till the end of January...because that's suppose to be the resolution month right? And I have come up with a solution. I am not going to write a resolution telling myself I will lose weight..cause I'm tired of that one. I'm not going to save extra money, cause something always comes up and seems to steal that nice stash away. I 'm not going to say I'm going to ditch sugar and make my diabetes better, cause I love sugar and frankly why get all bent outta shape over something I know I'll never give up? no sense in that. I'm not going to say I'm going on a nice trip...cause I never do. I'm not going to promise I'll have an excellent attitude all year...cause who does? Basically I'm not going to set myself up for failure. And I know I would fail at all of those things. So hears what I'm going to do.

My new years resolution is....To TRY.

Yes friends....I promise this year to try. I'm going to try to be healthy. With that comes better decisions of what I eat, How I exercise and how much I educate myself on my issues. I'm going to TRY to have a better budget this year. I'm going to educate myself on finances and how to get the most out of your money. i am going to TRY to make better decisions on what, when, and where my money goes. I'm going to TRY to eat less sugar and TRY to remember my pills three times a day to regulate my blood sugar levels...which in turn will help me feel better physically, and mentally. I'm going to TRY to go for a get away. Not a fancy trip, because that's too unrealistic for me. Just maybe a weekend getaway. I'm going to TRY to have a better attitude. I'm going to TRY to be a better person. I was looking through some quotes and pictures of days gone by and found one that I received a long time ago. Over the years I have forgotten about the message of this poem and I felt it was such a good time to have stumbled upon it.

" When you get what you want in your struggle for gain,
and the world makes you Queen for a day,
Just go to the mirror and look at yourself
and see what that gal has to say.
It isn't your father or mother or friend,
whose judgement upon you must pass.
The one whose verdict counts most in your life
is the one staring back in the glass.
She's the one you must satisfy beyond all the rest,
for she's with you right up to the end;
And you have passed your most difficult test
if the one in the glass is your friend!
You may be one who got a good break--
then say I'm a wonderful gal;
but the one in the glass says you're only a fake;
if you can't call that person your pal.
You may fool the world down your pathway of years,
and get pats on the back as you pass;
but your final reward will be heartaches and tears
if you've cheated the girl in the glass."

I love this. It makes me want to be a better person. So among all the other things I'm going to try this new year, I'm going to try to make the girl in the glass my friend! I'm going to TRY to be a better wife, a better mother, a better sister, a better daughter, a better friend. I'm going to TRY to love the girl in the glass.

So I'm sure some people have real nifty, productive resolutions this year, but the only promise I'm going to make is that I TRY. This leaves lots of room for error, of which is bound to occur, but if I at least TRY to do these things I know I will become a better me. And when I look at that gal in the glass I can smile.

A WOMAN AND HER GOAT...

2009-12-28T14:32:00.000-08:00

SO...I HAVE A GOAT. LIKE MOST OF THE ANIMALS I INHERIT...IT HAS A STORY. SO, THIS IS THE STORY OF MY GOAT.

I HEADED INTO BASIN FEED TO PURCHASE SOME RABBIT FEED FOR CONNER'S BUNNIES...YES BUNNIES..HE HAS TWO. THEY ALWAYS HAVE SOME SORT OF ANIMAL IN THERE FOR KIDS TO LOOK AT...IN HOPES THAT SOME PARENT WILL GET SUCKED INTO THE DRAMA AND PURCHASE THAT ANIMAL FOR THEIR CHILD SQ WILLING WITH DELIGHT. THAT DAY THEY HAD A BIN WITH PUPPIES, UGLY ONES, AND A BIN WITH TWO GOATS, PIGMY GOATS. NOW I HAVE SEEN THESE GOATS BEFORE AND THEY ARE SORTA CUTE...FOR A GOAT. ANYWAY, THE GIRLS WERE WITH ME...WHICH WAS PROBABLY MY FIRST MISTAKE. THEY WERE COOING OVER THE GOATS. A NICE MAN STANDING IN LINE BEHIND ME WAS HOLDING THE GOATS STILL SO THE GIRLS COULD PET THEM. I PROCEEDED TO PAY FOR MY SMALL BAG OF FEED AND CHATTED WITH THE TELLER WHILE WE WATCHED THE GIRLS PLAY. TAYLOR, TURNED TO ME AND SAID," MOM...CAN WE GET THIS GOAT? PLEAAAAASE." I SAID, WELL IT IS KINDA CUTE...BUT NO. JUST LIKE CHILDREN THAT DON'T SEEM TO EVER HEAR YOU THE FIRST TIME...SHE ASKED AGAIN.. AND LIKE ANY MOTHER I TURNED TO HER AND SAID," HONEY THOSE GOATS ARE 100.00 DOLLARS AND IF I HAD A SPARE HUNDRED I'D BUY IT...BUT I DON'T SO..NO. " I THEN PAYED FOR MY FEED AND STARTED TO HELP THE GIRLS GET THEIR COATS ON. THE NICE MAN BEHIND ME PAYED FOR HIS STUFF, TALKED TO THE TELLER A BIT, THEN LEFT. JUST AS I WAS PRYING MY GIRLS FROM THE GOAT BIN THE LADY CAME OVER WITH A BOX AND LIFTED A GOAT INTO THE BOX. I SAID," OH THAT MAN MUST HAVE BOUGHT THIS GOAT." THE LADY THEN LAUGHED AND SAID," NO MAM...THAT GUY BOUGHT THIS GOAT FOR YOU!" SHE THEN HANDED ME THE BOX...WITH A GOAT INSIDE...STARING AT ME...YES WITH THOSE EYES...I KINDA LAUGHED AND SAID." OH WELL, THAT WAS SURE NICE BUT I CAN'T AFFORD TO FEED IT." THINKING THAT WAS MY OUT. SHE THEN PROCEEDED TO TELL ME I DIDN'T HAVE TO FOR SOME TIME BECAUSE THAT NICE MAN....OH THAT NICE MAN...HE ALSO BOUGHT ME A 50 LB. BAG OF GOAT FEED. I JUST STARED AT HER. BY NOW THE REALIZATION THAT THIS GOAT WAS A GIFT HIT MY GIRLS AND THEY WERE SO EXCITED...I MEAN WHO GETS TO TAKE A GOAT HOME...IN A BOX...EVERYDAY. NOT MANY FOR SURE :)

SO TO MAKE A LONGER STORY SHORT... THEY LOADED FEED AND A BOX..WITH A GOAT IN IT..INTO MY CAR AND SAID THE MAN SAID TO HAVE A MERRY CHRISTMAS. YES MERRY IT HAS BEEN. I STARED AT THIS GOAT ALL THE WAY BACK HOME...IT SAT NEXT TO ME IN THE CAR. I HAD TO LOCK IT IN MY BATHROOM TILL BRANDON GOT HOME TO BUILD IT A PEN. I'M NOT SURE HE WAS TOO EXCITED WHEN I CALLED HIM AND TOLD HIM I HAD A GOAT IN THE BATHROOM THAT NEEDED A PEN. BUT REGARDLESS..A PEN WAS BUILT. AND THE GOAT ONLY ESCAPED THE BATHROOM TWICE WHILE IN IT. TOOK ME 30 MINUTES TO CATCH IT...MAN THOSE THINGS ARE FAST! AND THEY JUMP!

SO NOW OUR GOAT HAS A NAME...BELLA.
SHE LIVES IN A MAKESHIFT IGLOO NEXT TO THE RABBITS BEHIND THE HOUSE. MY LANDLORD DOES NOT KNOW...HEAVEN HELP ME WHEN HE DOES KNOW. SHHH! :) FUNNY THING IS LATELY BELLA HAS ESCAPED HER PEN. AND EVEN FUNNIER WHEN SHE DOES SHE SITS ON THE BACK PORCH AND WAILS LIKE A BABY. THEN WHEN I GO OUT SHE RUNS BACK BEHIND THEN HOUSE AND INTO HER PEN. WHENEVER I HEAR HER WAILING I JUST LOOK OUT THE DINING ROOM WINDOW AND SURE ENOUGH SHE'S SITTING ON THE PORCH CRYING FOR ME. ONE NIGHT SHE MADE ABOUT SIX LAPS AROUND MY HOUSE..WITH DOGS BEHIND HER...BEFORE WE CAUGHT HER. WE TIED HER TO A TREE THE OTHER DAY SO THE KIDS COULD PLAY WITH HER. SHE BALLS LIKE A NEWBORN UNTIL YOU PICK HER UP AND THEN SHE STOPS AND JUST STARES AT YOU WITH THESE BIG GLASSY BEADED EYES THAT ARE MOST LIKELY SAYING, THANK YOU FOR RESCUING ME FROM THAT PEN AT THE FEED STORE...I'M SURE IT'S SOMETHING LIKE THAT.

SO...MY LOVE OF LIVING IN THE COUNTRY IN AN OLD HOUSE IS DEFINITELY TESTING ME LATELY. I HAVE DEFINITELY LEARNED A FEW LESSONS THIS TIME AROUND.

#1 DON'T TAKE YOUR KIDS TO THE FEED STORE..ESPECIALLY WHERE NICE MEN MIGHT BE WAITING TO BUY YOU SOMETHING!

#2 DON'T EVER EVER EVER TELL YOUR KIDS YOU'D BUY IT IF YOU HAD THE MONEY...CAUSE ONCE AGAIN YOU NEVER KNOW HOW MANY NICE PEOPLE ARE JUST WAITING TO SPEND THEIR MONEY ON YOUR KIDS!

#3 WHEN YOU LIVE IN THE COUNTRY EXPECT TO HAVE PEOPLE DUMP THEIR UNWANTED ANIMALS ON YOUR PORCH AND EXPECT TO HAVE LOTS OF ANIMALS CAUSE IF YOU LIVE IN THE COUNTRY YOU MUST LIVE ON A FARM! ???

#4 DO NOT LET THE BIG BEADED GLASSY EYES PULL YOU IN! YOU THINK YOU CAN RESIST..BUT I'D LIKE TO SEE WHAT YALL WOULD HAVE DONE :)

#5 EXPECT THAT EVERY ANIMAL YOU BRING HOME..OR TAKE IN AFTER SOMEONE DUMPS IT...EVEN IF IT STAYS OUTSIDE...THEY IMMEDIATELY ASSUME YOU ARE THEIR MOTHER. AND THEY WILL CRY FRIENDS...THEY WILL CRY FOR YOU AND YOU WILL PICK THEM UP...EVERY ONE OF THEM...BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT MOTHERS DO.

AND EVERYONE NEEDS A MOTHER. EVEN IF IT'S NOT THEIR OWN.

KIDS...ALLL OF THEM.

2009-12-08T08:22:00.000-08:00

I failed to mention that my last post was my 100Th post....quite an accomplishment for me, and what a perfect post to have it on. I'd like to do a list of 100 things, but I'm sure no one wants to read 100 things about me or of me or whatever, so we will just skip that and get on with posting life and it's funny little quirks.

So some of you know I'm not so much a morning person. I lOVE staying up late and DESPISE the whole waking up thing. I have never slept in past 8 in fact, but Rolling outta bed in the morning definitely has literal meaning to me. Brandon's alarm goes of at 630 mine at seven, but I'm awake when his goes off, how does anyone honestly sleep through another persons alarm? not me. anyway i roll out at seven to get kids up, ready and on the bus.

I started the kids off with breakfast then let the dogs outside, then the cat in. Poor thing, it is 7 degrees and a wind of no less than 20 mph for sure! So cold to say the least. So Oscar, the cat, comes in in the morning to get warm for a bit then we kick him back out. I do feel bad for him having to be out in that cold, and he is the most well behaved animal I have ever owned, but yet he's the one that gets kicked out. Funny how that works in other aspects of our lives. Anyway, i sat Presley up in her chair and gave her a bowl of cereal, then went to wash my face. when i came back i noticed something in the chair at the end of the table. this is what I saw.

I thought...seriously. no way. So I got closer. Yes friends this is again what I saw.

So as I chuckled I simply asked Oscar what he needed. Without saying a word he gave me those eyes...ya know like the ones that cat on SHrek gives...the big sad glassy looking ones. Yep I got those. He simply gave me the eyes then looked directly at Presley's cereal bowl.

That is exactly when my heart melted. The poor thing was cold....obviously hungry...and thought if he sat up to the table like Presley nicely in a chair that he too would be given a bowl of milk.....which I have not given him in years!!!! How smart? I mean really.

So I warmed up a bowl of milk, meanwhile he just sat there and waited, then i put it in front of him and he quietly ate. He didn't even drip! Then If that wasn't enough, when he was done he simply turned around and got down. no whining, nothing, he just got on with his day. miraculous.

Ya know, those people who know the story of my cat, and if you don't it's in my early posts, know he is one of a kind. I know he came from a rough area, and he is just so thankful to have the things he has now, and he's proving it. He is soooo good to me. I don't do whining cats always rubbing on your legs and jumping on your counters and just being annoying. I have kids and two dogs for that, he's just a quiet, reserved cat and I love him! Never bothers anyone. And if I would have yelled at him to get off my chair he would have just jumped down and got on with his day. I often wonder why my dogs can't take heed of his shinning example. instead they do all the opposite; wine, beg, bark, slobber,climb on furniture, steal peoples food. I mean don't get me wrong they are small dogs and they aren't THAT bad, but I just wish they were more like my cat.

Oscar is definitely one of a kind. He won't join us every morning for breakfast, but I gotta admit if everyone just sat up and waited patiently, QUIETLY, without a whine or a bark or fighting over what bowl you get....If everyone acted like my cat....I would definitely be more pleasant around mealtimes...and everyone would get milk. :)

GRADUATION !!!

2009-11-20T17:48:00.000-08:00

MY BABY HAS GRADUATED! MAN I FEEL SO MANY EMOTIONS AT ONCE AT A TIME LIKE THIS. I HAVE THIS EXCITEMENT AND JOY THAT I JUST WANT TO SHOOT THROUGH THE ROOF, A HAPPINESS ONLY A TRULY PROUD PARENT COULD HAVE, AND AT THE SAME TIME AN OVERWHELMING UNCERTAINTY TO HOLD ON TO SOMETHING I HAVE HAD AS A PART OF MY LIFE FOR THE LAST 8 ALMOST 9 YEARS.

THIS TREK IN MY LIFE HAS BEEN A LONG, ROUGH ROAD, WITH SO MANY OBSTACLES I CAN'T EVEN COUNT. IT HAS BEEN A JOURNEY I WILL NEVER FORGET, AND A GRADUATION WELL WORTH THE FIGHT.

AS OF NOVEMBER 17, 2009 CONNER HAS BEEN DISCHARGED FROM PHYSICAL THERAPY, OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY, FEEDING THERAPY, AND SPEECH THERAPY. AT ONE POINT IN MY LIFE I THOUGHT WE WOULD NEVER GET HERE, I TOLD MYSELF A LONG TIME AGO IT DIDN'T MATTER IF WE EVER GOT DISCHARGED, I LOVE MY BUBBLES NO MATTER WHAT, BUT TO SEE THE GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT I HAVE SEEN OVER THE LAST 8 PLUS YEARS AND TO BE DISCHARGED AGAINST ALL ODDS AND ALL PROGNOSIS; THE FEELING IS TRULY PRICELESS.
FOR THE FIRST THREE YEARS OF CONNER'S LIFE HE COMMUNICATED ONLY BY SIGN LANGUAGE. IT WASN'T EASY TO LEARN OR TO TEACH, BUT HAVING A TRACHEOTOMY PROVIDED NO OPPORTUNITY FOR SPEECH, SO TO COMMUNICATE WITH OUR LITTLE ONE, IT WAS MUCH NEEDED. CONNER'S FAVORITE SIGN WAS I LOVE YOU. AFTER COMING OFF A VENTILATOR AND MOVING TO ONLY OXYGEN THROUGH HIS TRACH, WE WERE ABLE TO PLACE A SPEAKING VALVE ON HIS TRACH AND TEACH HIM TO USE HIS VOICE. I REMEMBER THE FIRST TIME THEY PUT THAT VALVE ON. HE WAS CRYING BECAUSE HE DIDN'T UNDERSTAND WHAT WAS HAPPENING, I DON'T BLAME HIM, BUT THE FIRST THING I HEARD WAS THE SOUND OF HIM CRYING. AND THEN OF COURSE I WAS CRYING :) FOR A LONG TIME WE KNEW HE WAS CRYING BY LOOKING AT HIM, BUT WE WERE UNABLE TO HEAR HIM. AND NOW AFTER 8 YEARS OF SPEECH THERAPY, WE HEAR HIM.

CONNER HAS WORKED SOOO HARD FOR SO LONG TO ACHIEVE THE STABILITY HE HAS NOW. WE USE TO HAVE TO GET HIM UP AT SIX THIRTY IN THE MORNING FOR AN HOUR LONG OF PHYSICAL THERAPY, AND WE DID THIS THREE TO FOUR DAYS A WEEK FOR TWO YEARS. THEN WE WENT TO TWICE A WEEK FOR TWO MORE. AND FOR THE LAST FOUR WE HAVE GONE ONCE A WEEK. WE HAVE ALSO TRAVELED TO MILWAUKEE WISCONSIN FOR AN INTENSIVE FEEDING TEAM THAT HELPED US LEARN THE TOOLS TO TEACH CONNER HOW TO EAT. CONNER HAS BEEN TUBE FED FOR SEVEN YEARS, AND JUST LAST YEAR HE HAD HIS FEEDING TUBE REMOVED. WHAT A CHANCE AT A SKILL SO MANY OF US TAKE FOR GRANTED EVERY DAY...EATING. AFTER BEING TURNED DOWN BY SEVERAL INTENSIVE FEEDING TEAMS AROUND THE GLOBE BECAUSE OF HIS EXTENSIVE MEDICAL HISTORY, WE WERE FINALLY ACCEPTED TO THE CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL IN MILWAUKEE. WE WERE ACCEPTED WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT THERE WERE NO PROMISES, AND THEY WOULD ONLY DO AS MUCH AS HE COULD PHYSICALLY HANDLE, WHICH WAS NOT MUCH. WE DROVE TO MILWAUKEE EVERY OTHER MONTH AND STAYED AT THE RONALD MCDONALD HOUSE FOR A WEEK. WE DID THAT FOR TWO YEARS. AFTER ALL THEY COULD DO AND ALL THE TEACHING WE COULD LEARN WE WERE AGAIN TURNED OUT ON OUR OWN. NOW 8 YEARS AND 7 MONTHS LATER, MY BUBBLES CAN EAT WITHOUT THE AID OF A TUBE.SO MANY THINGS...SO MANY LITTLE THINGS THAT HE HAD TO LEARN. THINGS YOU AND I CAN'T EVEN UNDERSTAND WHY IT WOULD BE SO HARD. EATING, WALKING, SITTING, CRAWLING, TEXTURE, SOUND, SMELL, CROWDS, BREATHING....THINGS THAT OUR BODIES DO NATURALLY. THINGS THAT YOU CAN'T EVEN IMAGINE HAVING TO LEARN ALL OVER AGAIN. SO MANY THINGS A LITTLE GUY HAD TO DO ALL OVER, AND WORK SOOOOOO HARD FOR. THINGS THAT HAVE TAKEN 8 YEARS TO LEARN. I SIT AND THINK OFTEN ABOUT HOW A PARENT FEELS WHEN THEIR CHILD TAKES THE FIRST STEP, OR BITE OF SOLID FOOD, OR CRAWLS, OR ROLLS OVER, OR PERHAPS THE SIGHT OF ANOTHER BREATHE AFTER A SERIOUS ILLNESS, OR CHOKING. BUT CAN YOU IMAGINE THE SIGHT AND THE FEELING OF SEEING THOSE THINGS WHEN EVERY MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL TELLS YOU HE CAN'T, OR WON'T? THE FEELING IS THE SAME....PRICELESS, BUT AT SUCH A HIGHER LEVEL OF INTENSITY I CANNOT EXPLAIN.

MY CONNER HAS DONE A LOT OF THINGS IN HIS 8 YEARS HERE ON EARTH THAT MOST PEOPLE WILL GO A LIFETIME WITHOUT EXPERIENCING. HE HAS BEEN A TROOPER THE WHOLE WAY THROUGH. JUST ONE OF THOSE BABIES WHO DESPITE THEIR PAIN AND OBSTACLES, CONTINUED TO SMILE.

AFTER JUST THE FIRST YEAR OF HIS LIFE I WAS CERTAIN HE WOULD REFRAIN FROM BONDING WITH ME IF I HELD HIM DOWN FOR YET ONE MORE IV LINE OR ONE MORE SHOT, BUT CONNER HAS LOVED EVERYONE EVERY STEP OF THE WAY. I AM SO DEEPLY PROUD OF THE EXAMPLE, THE PATIENCE, THE SINCERITY, THE HUMBLENESS, THE STRENGTH, AND THE LOVE CONNER HAS. I HAVE NEVER SEEN ANYONE ENDURE SO MUCH AND BE SO HAPPY. HE HAS A LOT A HEAD OF HIM, BUT I KNOW HE IS STRONG....LOOK AT HOW MUCH HE HAS ACCOMPLISHED. A LOT OF PEOPLE ASK HOW WE EVER DID IT, OR CONTINUE TO DO IT, BUT MY ANSWER IS JUST THE SAME TODAY AS IT WILL BE TOMORROW; WE JUST DO IT. IT IS A LIFESTYLE THAT HAS BEEN A ROLLER COASTER, AND WILL CONTINUE TO BE SO, BUT I WOULDN'T TRADE MY BUBBLES FOR A SINGLE MINUTE FOR ANYTHING ANYONE CAN PROVE TO BE BETTER. NOTHING IS BETTER FOR ME.

CONGRATULATIONS CONNER...YOU HAVE ACHIEVED SO MUCH, WITH EVERYTHING AGAINST YOU, YOU HAVE ONCE AGAIN DEFIED ALL ODDS. I AM SO TRULY GRATEFUL TO BE YOUR MOM. YOU ARE LOVED SO MUCH AND ALWAYS WILL BE. YOU ARE MY STRENGTH, MY SUNSHINE, MY BUBBLES...MY CONNER. AND I LOVE YOU.

LOVE, MOM

2009-11-15T18:05:00.000-08:00

AFTER LOOKING THROUGH MY POST I FORGOT THESE LAST FEW PICS!! SO...FINALLY...OUR FANCY PUMPKINS. THERE'S A GOBLIN IN THE MIDDLE WITH SLEEPING BEAUTY ON TOP AND JASMINE ON THE BOTTOM.
TAYLOR GOT HER FACE PAINTED AT THE CARNIVAL. A BIG SPIDER, EQUIPPED WITH JEWELS :)
AND LAST OF ALL A PIC OF US AT THE CARNIVAL. HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

HALLOWEEN PART 2

2009-11-15T16:48:00.000-08:00

I HAVE TO SHARE THE REST OF MY HALLOWEEN PICTURES BEFORE IT'S THANKSGIVING! WE DID A HALLOWEEN PARTY FOR THE KIDS OVER AT AMBER'S HOUSE. CELESTE WAS DOWN VISITING AND CAROL LOVES TO PARTY, SO THEY SET UP A COOL LITTLE PARTY FOR THE KIDS; COMPLETE WITH DECORATIONS, FOOD, AND GAMES.

DARREN AND CAROL DECORATED THE MUD ROOM INTO A SPOOKY DINING AREA FOR THE KIDS.

AMBER COOKED UP SNAKE, AND IT WAS FABULOUS HOW IT SPLIT AND SPILLED IT'S GUTS! THE KIDS WERE A LITTLE HESITANT TO EAT, BUT AFTER THEY TASTED, IT WAS GOOD.

WE LET THEM BOB FOR APPLES. THAT WAS PRETTY FUNNY, ALL THESE KIDS, ONE BIG BOWL OF APPLES....YUCK. :) THEY SURE HAD FUN THOUGH.

OUR GRAVEYARD DESSERT TURNED OUT GREAT. AMBER MADE THE GRAVEYARD WITH PUDDING AND CHOPPED UP COOKIES AND I DECORATED IT WITH TOMBSTONES AND GHOSTS...YES THOSE WHITE THINGS ARE SUPPOSE TO BE GHOSTS....I TRIED.

WE ALSO MADE GHOSTS OUT OF SOCKS. I BOUGHT SOCKS AND WE CUT THE BOTTOMS OFF AND THEN GLUED EYES ON THEM. THEY WERE SUPER CUTE.

THE KIDS HAD A GREAT TIME. I HOPE THEY KNOW HOW SPOILED THEY ARE CAUSE THIS WAS A SUPER DUPER PARTY.... :)

TRICK...OR TREAT?

2009-11-03T09:12:00.000-08:00

Ah, another holiday behind us, three more to really go. good thing they jam them all into about three months, I don't think I could be crazy all year long! :) Actually I like Halloween. Pumpkins, lights, costumes, candy...candy. kids were all cute this year, as always...how could a kid not be cute in a Halloween costume...o.k. i have seen some not so cute costumes, but that doesn't mean the little people inside them aren't cute. Needless to say, my kids were dashing this year. I finally convinced Conner to give up the sully costume from monsters Inc., the same one i have in every Halloween picture for the last five years. He decided he would be an old man. He pulled it off perfectly, even the walk.

Taylor wanted to be a witch again, but this year she wore the grey hair and I talked her into painting her face green. She is a good little witch.

Presley didn't get to choose her costume, last child syndrome...hand-me-downs. She was an elephant, but I have to say a darn cute one. she loved me putting pink blush on her cheeks...I had to reapply several times just to keep her happy :)She wasn't too sure about the whole trick or treat thing, but she soon joined in after seeing candy was involved and mom was close. In fact she was a little stinker cause after we went to the church party I took them out to hit a few houses, and I just let her run up with the other kids. Well, before I know it she's walking right into the house past the lady with the candy and headed down the hall!!! I ran up after her and the lady was like," oh, sweetie you can't just come into a strangers house." I was embarrassed, but oh well. Nice big dog sitting in the living room too, needless to say I walked her to the door each time after that.

I think the kids had a lot of fun this year. Chili, candy, face painting, trick or treating, costumes, my yummy caramel corn...I think it was a good one. Boy they are getting big fast.

HALLOWEEN TREAT

2009-10-28T20:41:00.000-07:00

I FOUND THIS COOL TREAT TO MAKE FOR HALLOWEEN AND THOUGHT I'D SHARE. IT'S SUPER EASY AND SUPER YUMMY. JUST A FEW INGREDIENTS.

MY FAVORITE VANILLA ICE CREAM. CHIPS AHOY COOKIES, AND SPRINKLES!

JUST PUT 1/4 CUP ICE CREAM A TOP A COOKIE, I THOUGH IT WAS A LITTLE MUCH, BUT HEY, STILL GOOD. PUT ANOTHER COOKIE ON TOP. SQUEEZE LIGHTLY, THEN ROLL EDGES INTO HALLOWEEN SPRINKLES. WA LA!

THEN PUT THEM INTO THE FREEZER FOR ABOUT HALF HOUR, THEN ENJOY! WE DID.

EASY FOR KIDS TO MAKE, SETS UP QUICK, AND FESTIVE. AND JUST IN CASE YALL THINK I WAS SO CRAFTY TO THINK THIS YUMMY ONE UP, THE RECIPE IS ON THE PACKAGE OF HALLOWEEN CHIPS AHOY COOKIES. :)

HMMMM.....I BET YOU COULD DO THIS WHEN THE CHRISTMAS ONES COME OUT TOO! :)

Oh boy...

2009-10-10T17:49:00.000-07:00

I know this photo is horrible, but was a must post. If you look carefully you'll see Brandon, riding Conner's john deer gator, yes people....that is a motorized four wheeler....FOR KIDS.... Brandon definately exceeds both the height and weight requierments, but those weren't stopping him tonight! I caught this photo from inside, undercover. He probably thought no one would see him cause it was dark, but secrets out...some kids just never grow up. They just wait till their kids go to bed and their wives are occupied.... then they re-live all their childhood dreams.

CANNING

2009-10-05T22:05:00.001-07:00

I know some of these pictures are not very clear and bright, but Presley was such a big helper while I was doing my caning this year I couldn't not post them. I usually do a lot of canning, but this was just a busy time for me this year and I just got done what I could. I had to do Raspberry jam because it's our favorite. I spent most of my time eating the raspberries while I picked, but eventually after a few trips to brenda's raspberry patch and several sweat hours, my berries were picked and ready to go.

I had the rare opportunity this year to try white raspberries, yep white. I had never heard of such a thing, but they are to die for. They were so good we just kept eating them, they are sweeter than reds. I planned on making a jar of just white jam, but I'm afraid more ended up in our bellies than planned and we didn't have enough, so we just mixed them in.

Taylor was such a good helper at picking them, wish i would have had my camera on me. She was picking for quite some time and I had the bucket by me, so i said, " Taylor you need the bucket for all those berries yet?" She replied, " Oh Mom, these raspberries are just so good I can't stop shoving them in my mouth!" So cute. Picking and eating.

Now that both older kids are in school Presley is my daytime helper, and she just looooved making jam with me. She is quite the crack up, always making us laugh.

The jam was a success, oh so yummy.
My next canning project was grape juice. This can be tricky process, a messy one, but We love it, so we can it. Wash, steam, extract, bottle.

That about sums it up! I made 30 jars this year, and it is so good. There is nothing like homemade grape juice. I remember as a kid sitting next to the fence at the bottom of our driveway eating grapes off the overgrown vines from our neighbors yard. mmmm.

I learned a new trick this year while doing grape juice. Instead of adding sugar when you mix it up right before you drink it, I sprinkled sugar over the grapes while they steamed. I think this worked so well. The juice is already sweetned when bottled.

School Days

2009-09-23T08:10:00.000-07:00

I now have TWO big school kids... wow, That makes me feel old. Conner and Taylor both started school this year, and they both enjoy it. They both get to ride the bus to school...Yeah for me!!!!. But then I have to go pick Taylor up, half day kindergarten. Wish they did all day, would be much nicer on the gas bill. Oh well, next year.

Conner is enjoying school so far,

and Taylor always wants to know why she can't stay and eat lunch and ride the bus home....I just tell her, so do I.

It's funny how some kids really like school and others really struggle. I don't remember what my feelings were back when I was that age. I do remember walking to school though, A long way. Seems like we would have to get up so early so we could get to walking. Walking home wasn't that bad cause we could take our time, walk slow, but I remember some mornings hearing that bell ring and I was still a good ways away and I'd have to run. I do remember the smell though, cool air, and wet grass. Don't know why I always remember that, but I do.

I also remember how I thought school would never end. And for my little ones, it's only just begun.

Grandpa's Ponytail

2009-09-17T10:38:00.000-07:00

While we were down at Grandpa's visiting, Presley received some very special treatment from grandpa. Grandpa's famous pony tail :) I remember these when I was a little girl. I would sit at the bottom of the stairs, my Dad a few steps up, and I would receive my "PONYTAIL" I remember these for a few reasons, one because they hurt like crazy to get. Dad always had to slick the hair back real good, I'm assuming that's because he didn't want to have to redo it later from it falling out. Two, it was always fun to know that Dad wasn't afraid to tackle the girls hair, I think he actually liked doing it, And three, our eyes hurt like crazy afterwards, we use to laugh saying we had instant "china" eyes.

Presley was eager to climb up to get her hair done, she even retrieved the brush and spray. I thought after a few pulls she would be done, but the little one just sat through the whole process, which can take a few minutes due to the amount of slicking, she was so good, didn't even cry. She even left it in all day, and of course it did not fall out :)

We love grandpa. The pony tails are something I will always remember from my childhood, and now Presley has proof she participated in this fine art as well.

Where is a Rainbow?

2009-09-08T21:52:00.000-07:00

I saw a rainbow once,
Drifting in the sky.
My science teacher told me
It was only in my eye.

It made the Heavens sparkle,
A simply wondrous sight.
My science teacher said
It was just a trick of light.

He said rainbows were refractions,
Just the bending of the light.
That they didn't speak of hope or joy,
Of good or bad, or wrong or right.

He said life is made of molecules,
Exact and perfectly precise.
And rainbows don't have meaning,
Beyond equations quite concise.

I'd like to meet my science teacher
Once before I'm done.
I'd like to teach him something
I learned when I was young.

You can see a rainbow many ways,
And if you're very smart,
You won't see them with your eyes,
You'll see them with your heart.

Joe Wayman

FRED'S STORY

2009-08-31T21:08:00.000-07:00

This is Fred. Fred has a story, a long one, but a must tell, long story. I encourage you to read it, and I encourage you to get tissue because every time I tell it, tears come.

We live in the country, real country. We have lots of trees, which in natural bring lots of birds. Most of the time they don't bother me, except when they fly into my windows and I have to clean them up off the yard, but this year we have had soooo many birds. The problem I face is the amount of baby birds that fall from the giant trees. I have a cat, who views this as an easy lunch, and I also have two dogs, which are for some reason very territorial against the birds, even the babies. So I have spent many a day’s cleaning up dead birds. We have many kinds of birds, but they all keep to the same areas of the yard according to species. In the back corner of my yard live the black birds. They are the annoying ones. Every time I go out they dip at me and scream at me and I can't even mow the lawn or sit in that corner of the yard without being attacked. Many baby birds fall out of these trees. We found one, one day and rescued it before it became lunch, I couldn't very well let it sit on the ground and be eaten while my kids played in the yard, so we scooped it up, ugly looking and all, found its nest and put it back. Next day we found it out again, I repeated the same process, next day same thing. I could tell the little guy was not going to make it, it was just brand new, hungry, and I assumed the reason it kept ending up on the ground was because the mother was kicking it out, after I put it back; I did use gloves. This sort of irked me, but sure enough one morning our little guy was on the ground again and had not survived another fall. Kids were sad.

Well, the other side of my yard, yes it's big, I have these really tall trees. We have another species there. Well one day, while playing with the kids I saw my dog attacking something, actually Taylor did and she rushed to rescue it. After coming back from the point of attack, she was holding a cute, tiny little bird. You'll now know him as Fred. We tried to look for Fred's nest, but the branches are so far up, I could see nothing. I knew if she put Fred down, he would be instant play toy for three animals, so for a while she just carried him around. Taylor insisted she be his mother because he no longer had one, and she made him a home. The kids found a box and made a nest in it out of branches grass and leaves. Here she placed Fred. I didn't know what to do with Fred; I certainly didn't want to see him lying on my back porch the next morning, so we put him in his new nest and put him up on top the bunny cage. Fred could not fly, so I knew he would be safe.

For the next few days the kids played with Fred. They would lock the dogs up and put him on the grass and try to teach him how to fly, so priceless. Fred spent the majority of his time riding around on Taylor’s finger. He just sat there, held on tight, and chirped at her. I knew we had to find Fred's mom or he would not survive, so I had Brandon climb up the tree with a ladder and check it out. Of course he found nests, but so many, and we couldn't be sure which one was his. I knew Fred had to eat. I told the kids to go find him a worm, and after searching diligently they brought me a big fat one. Conner reminded us that baby birds usually eat from their mothers’ mouth after she chews up the food for them, nice. I was very firm on the fact that I was NOT going to do this, so Taylor insisted she break up the worm into tiny pieces and try to feed him. Fred would not eat. We tried several times and then some more the next day. He finally took a small bite, but nothing to sustain himself I'm sure. Poor Fred, I feared the worst for him and I knew this one would be hard because he was Taylor's little finger buddy. Of all the birds, he has been the only one to sit on our fingers and talk to us.

After sitting in the yard debating what we should do, Brandon brought to my attention a very small yellow bird that kept flying over us, but then flying away. After I thought about it, I thought, could it be? Could this be his mother? I mean it is so noisy in my yard I can't tell who the birds are talking to, but there was only one way to tell. The kids put the animals in the house and we placed Fred at the bottom of a small lone tree and then huddled on the swing to watch. At first the Yellow bird would fly to the tree then fly away immediately, but I had hopes because this lone tree never housed any birds, it was too small, and too low to the ground. Fred slept for a while and the bird repeated this same process only each time staying a little longer. We kept absolutely still because each time we moved the bird would fly away. Soon Fred began to cry, and then so did I because with each cry the yellow bird came closer and closer until finally it landed on the ground next to Fred. Immediately Fred became ballistic and the yellow bird was consoling him. Fred found his mom. Then we watched her fly back to the trees and return with food for Fred. He ate for a while.

Now this story doesn't end here, and the next half is what truly got me thinking. Being a bird and being on the ground is a dangerous thing, and after I saw the mother fly away I thought, “stupid mother, can't just leave him there." She would fly around him then come back, then fly up in the air then circle back, soon she discovered he could not fly, which I am now convinced that is what she was trying to get him to do, follow her. As we continued to watch, the mother would fly away then come back and land on an object. Then she'd talk. Then Fred would hop over to where his mother was. Then she would fly away again and then come back landing somewhere different, not too far from the last place. Then Fred would hop some more. I thought, “This is cute, but dumb. Where is she taking him?" They continued this ritual all the way back to one of those tall trees in the back yard. Fred then parked it at the base of the tree. The mother kept trying to get him to fly, but Fred could not fly. It brought tears to my eyes to see this mother watching her baby from a distance, and then coming back for him and helping him home.

At this point I knew we could not just let Fred sit on the ground at the bottom of the tree. So we put him in his box and lodged the box in the tree just below the other nests, hoping when his mother heard his cries she would take care of him there. After the kids went out to check on him the next morning, Fred was still in his box. A couple days went by and we kept an eye on Fred, but tried to leave him alone. One day we came out to check on Fred and he was not in his box. Upon searching for some time we could not find Fred. A day went by, then one afternoon while out in the grass pile, Brandon found Fred, alone, alive, and hiding in some weeds. Poor Fred is trying so hard to fly, but just can't. We put Fred back in the box. I just could not bear to leave him down for free food. Several more days went by and sometimes when we would find Fred had fallen out of the box, we would also find his mother nearby, watching him. I just hoped she would keep watching him.

One morning Fred was not in the box and nowhere to be found. We looked everywhere. Most of the baby birds had been flying for some time now, and they all look so alike, it was so hard to tell. But we believe Fred finally flew away. His mother was no longer flying around the ground watching him, and so far we have had no surprises on our porch. The kids were sad at first, but little Taylor was so excited after I told her I thought he finally learned to fly. She said, “So now he can be with his mommy in the trees!" Yes, I am convinced Fred is with his mommy in the trees.

It was sweet to see a mother watch her baby, come for her baby, feed him, and help him hop home. Regardless of the fact that Fred could not fly, his mother was still there. She still took him home. So why was the other bird left to die each time he fell out of the nest? And why was he being kicked out of the nest? I don't know. I have thought a lot about Fred, and his mom. No matter what species you are, being a mother is a special job. If one of my babies fell from the tree, I would watch them, I wouldn't stop looking until I found them, I would comfort and feed them, and if they could not fly I would help them hop home. We love Fred, we are grateful for the lessons he taught us and the experiences he gave us, and we always look for his wings among the trees.

2009-08-14T16:05:00.000-07:00

Each summer brings lots of fun activities for the family, including Family reunions! This year was Brandon's family reunion. This first photo is the face Presley gave us when we asked her to sit in the high chair to eat at grandma's. We have never had a high chair, I always use the chairs that clip onto the table, so needless to say she did not know what to do when we went to put her in it, and by the look on her face I assumed, " you want me to do what?"We have successfully floated the canal this year, a couple times so far. The kids enjoyed it more this year. Conner could touch and Taylor just swam. They both went all the way down to the spillway and then through.If there is anything that is most desirable at the family reunions, I would have to say Pop, and it was on the top of Presley's hit list. I let her indulge.
Now on to the fun at the family reunion. Dinner was good, company was plentiful and kids were well entertained. One of the games they played was the egg race. It was funny because the tiny tots only broke one egg, and the older kids were just too worried about getting to the finish that they had several splats. Presley was extra careful with her precious.
Another game was a race. the tiny tots had a hard time understanding what they were suppose to do, so Tiffany and I had to help them, yeah for us. The bigger kids took the race much more serious, partly because competition runs in their blood and because I was standing at the other end of the cones with a bag of candy! On your mark, get set, GO!!!!

Next up we have the three legged race. Once again I was at the end of the line with the bag of candy bars for enticement. Taylor and Campbell were partners, and Conner and Mary were partners.Next up was the water balloon toss, which everyone was waiting for all night long. Wonder why? :)After the kids were all game and candied out they decided to get the adults a little more action, so we had a pie eating contest. Rule was one member from each family had to eat, well everyone in our family refused to do it so we had to make Brandon. I was a little skeptical at first because if any of you have ever eaten a meal with Brandon, he is slow and he doesn't eat very much, but no one else would do it, so we made him.Conner was standing front and center with the other kids watching his dad and when some one yelled times up, one of the contestants threw their pie and it smashed all over Conner.
He was stunned. Both boys were good sports.
The next day of the reunion was spent down in Othello at Grandpa Roylance's pond. The kids had lots of fun this year. They did the slide, and the canoe's, and they even swam clear out to the dock, with just their life jackets. No photos of that because I was with them!

Conner had another bone age scan done, it's a scan that tests his bones to see how old they are, at what rate they're growing, and help forecast his growth. he is falling further behind. the endocrinologist still thinks he has short stature syndrome which in short means eventually he will stop growing. at any age. last time they did the scan he was 2 years behind, this time he is two and ahalf years behind. the good news is he still grew some, but the logical outlook is that since he keeps slowing falling behind, eventually he will stop. who knows. oh well, whether he is a man in a little boys body or eventually gets to grow, he's still our little conner. he is having a stem cell test done next month, not a fun test. they need to check his adrenal gland to see how much function it has left, if any. right now meds are doing most of the work. but he has been losing weight again, so they suspect it is losing some of the little function it has left. he had one done last year. he has been escaping most illnesses this year the only run in we have had are sinuses. other than that, he's been stable. he was so excited at the pond he put on his life jacket and swam all the way to the dock, me in tow. it took him a while, and his lips were purple when he got there, we sat for quite some time to catch our breathe. but he did it, and he was proud. I am happy to say all those months of swim lessons and all the cash to pay for it payed off to see that. he also took a canoe out, all by himself. he followed don tucker around while he was fishing, don ditched his fish by the bank and then let conner go claim it, it was cute. Carol also took him out to the dock, she is such a good sport, and then later he was out playing with the Batschi kids and the tucker kids. He sure likes to hang out with those older ones, and he just loves it when they take him under their wing. We enjoyed lots of good food, lots of sun, and good fun.
Until next time......

2009-07-29T15:23:00.000-07:00

This is my sister Senica, the bride. Presley was helping her smell a flower. too cute.

I thought I better get my butt in gear and update my blog. If I died today no one would know what has happened the last two months! Such a slacker. Summer is a super busy time for me. We had a wedding in my family this month and I traveled down to Utah to attend. It was so fun to see all my family. I have not seen some of my family members for years! Everyone is growing up so fast.

This is me and my brother James. A lot of people have asked me if we're twins, wish we were, but we're not. He is handsome.
I was able to meet my new neice and nephew also.

Eden

Hunter

This is a shot of my sisters and I, excluding the bride, and my two cousins, ashlee and heidi. It was fun to get together and catch up on everyone.

I made hair bows for all the little girls. This is Taylor's. One of the colors was lavendar. I thought they turned out really cute.

This is Conner just being a ham. He took a flower from a center piece decoration and was dancing around on the dance floor. He looks good in lavendar and blue! My little prince, always makes me smile.

Me and my two girls outside the Bountiful temple. It was really windy. We had a good trip. Saw lots of family. Good food, Good friends, Good fun.

And We're Back

2009-06-02T14:22:00.000-07:00

Well, I have basically fallen off the blog lately. I've been busy busy and super frustrated with my computer and getting pics to upload. So here is a re-cap of the last little while. First, I had a birthday. One year older, and I have to say wiser too. It was fabulous. Good food, good friends, good times.

This is me showing the kids I'm ready for some candle blowing, kinda a scary face, sorry.

Then I'm here sporting a new lip gloss Mary gave me, fabulous color. Thanks to everyone who supplied me with new items to add to my ward robe, as well as all the birthday wishes. It was great.

Next we have our super duper uncle Marlo, and his willingness to spoil his grand kids. And with us having no immediate family around, he lets our kids mooch off of all the fun stuff he has. Welcome to The Tree House Water park. It is so much fun. The weather has finally warmed up, we all have bathing suits, and now we have a waterpark, fabulous.

The first time we set it up our kids played for four hours! definitely fun. The waterpark is equipt with three water slides, a tree house in the middle, a rock wall, a basketball hoop, and a pool area for the little ones.

Presley had a blast with a bucket and everett.

We are so glad summer is finally here, feels like we have waited soooo long. Now hopefully it lasts as long as the winter did. Lots of sun, heat, tans, popsicles, kids, suits, and water! My kind of livin' We country goers live for the summer time, and I have to say, this year we are doing it in style.

And don't we all wish we could still wear our pony tails this high?

Baptism

2009-05-02T20:38:00.000-07:00

Eight is Great! Our handsome little guy was Baptized April 18, 2009 at 6pm. We had a great turn out for his big night. Grandpa and Grandma Beyeler drove up from Utah along with great grandpa and grandma, and Grandpa Vance also was able to come up. Conner had family from othello as well as moses lake attend; and some good friends. We appreciate them all for traveling such a ways to support Conner. It was a special night for him and he was so excited to have his grandparents there. I think I was more nervous than him!
They do baptisms by stake here, and there were quite a few kids, but it went smoothly, and Conner did great. He even made everyone laugh when he came up out of the water and shook his head like a fish and blubbered on about the water. He always seems to make everyone laugh one way or another. We have so many pictures from when grandparents were here and will be posting them soon. We love Conner and are greatful he has made this decision in his life.

2009-05-02T20:23:00.001-07:00

Every time April Fool's day rolls around, we have a birthday party. My computer has been down in the picture department until now, so this post is late, but better late than never! Conner has had a birthday, yeah! Our big boy is now 8! Yikes, that makes me feel really old. I feel bad for the guy cause his birthday always falls on spring break, so it's hard to find party goers that are in town, but we kinda had a birthday week instead! We went to a movie, Monsters vs. Aliens. I have to admit when they changed Susan's name to Ginormica, I kinda looked around like someone was looking at me, kinda is like my name. Conner had not been to the new McDonald's since it had opened, so we headed there for lunch and play time, yeah for all those clean toys! After lunch we went to pick up Conner's present. He got bunnies, ti's the season! They are fun. Since the bunnies were such a hit, we decided to make his birthday cake a bunny. I tried my best.It was really yummy. I made little ones too so everyone could have their own little cake! We had a few friends and family over and it was a fun little party. We love you Conner!

Anna

2009-05-02T20:09:00.000-07:00

This is Anna. Conner got two bunnies for his birthday, One needed a friend so that's how we ended up with two! My camera is still not loading my precious pics, so I took some more. I only got pictures of Anna though. We only have one leash, yes I bet you did not know you could walk a bunny did you? So any way I will take new pics of Theodore later. Anna is a cute little thing, and Taylor's buddy. She loves me of course, I am the one who makes sure she is taken care of. I caught this sweet pic of her meeting the dog.
At first The dogs would just chase them, of course, but after making the dog sit, the bunny actually came up to the dog to check her out. I think the dog was soooo scared she came up to her that she just froze. Intimidation. It was funny cause the first day we had them I brought them in the house because it was raining and Brandon was trying to put a roof over their cage, anyway, we were playing with them on the floor and Brandon came in he said " has the cat seen the bunnies yet?" I said no, and just as I did, the cat came walking around the corner, he only comes in to get his food at night, and as soon as he saw that bunny take a hop, he crouched and sprinted. Brandon chased the cat, I caught the bunny, and the kids almost saw the cat have bunny for dinner! It was traumatic for me. I had no idea the cat would try to catch the bunny, but then again i do forget he is a farm cat, and a good one. We don't bring the bunnies in anymore in fear that the cat might waltz in unnoticed and seize his lunch.

The bunnies are getting so big now, and they eat like humans, a lot. I am constantly feeding them. They are cute though, and little Anna likes to eat my Dandylions out of my lawn, so a plus for me.

2009-04-09T08:45:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to let everyone know I have fallen off the blog earth. My camera has had problems scanning my pictures, and now i finally got it fixed last night, but now the font on my computer is all messed up and after two hours and an aching back I gave up. I have pictures of birthday, bunnies, cows, and so much more and blogging without them would not do justice, so I will wait till my computer decides to get his act together, yes it's a he. no way a women would be having all these blogging problems right? so until i get it fixed, i will not be gracing you with all my personal journaling. I know I know, it'll be o.k. hopefully i'll be back soon.

SPIRIT WEEK

2009-03-24T20:16:00.000-07:00

I have always been a fan of spirit week. Partly because I was a cheerleader, therefore you are kind of in charge of the spirit, and partly just because I think it is fun to see all the kids express their selves. They have all sorts of fun things each day during the week; sports day, pajama day, school shirt day, backwards/inside out day, and of course my favorite, wacky hair day! I am a super fan of this because I also participated in wacky hair day when I was a youngin' I actually won 50 dollars, first prize for the wackiest hair. wish I had a pic, but I don't.

Basically I had really long hair, I put a braid on each side of my head, attached a hanger to my head and threaded the hair through, so I had a "Pippy long stocking" do. It was awesome. My hair stuck straight out and up off my head.

So today was wacky day, and our clothes we wear are already wacky, so I decided we would go with the hair. Poor Conner always wants to do spikes or something, but his hair is soooo stinking coarse, it won't budge. We call him our little Brillo pad, seriously, it's rough. A buz cut will always be his signature do, poor thing. Anyway, Dad saved the night last night by searching for hair dye, and came home with Hannah Montana blue.

It was a hit, and showed up perfectly. Taylor had to get in on the hairdo too, who could not if Hannah Montana was sporting it?Conner said the kids at school loved his hair, and Taylor loved showing hers off too. All in all wacky hair day was a success, I even put a few streaks in my hair, per request of the blue haired kids. At the end of the day; Wacky hair, Wacky kids, Happy mom.

ICE CREAM

2009-03-07T18:16:00.000-08:00

So I was in one of those moods where everyone gets ice cream, everyone. I have never really let Presley have rein over her own cone, but today she experienced that indulgence. Partly because every child should experience their own ice cream cone, and partly because I was indulging in a bowl of my own.

Mint chocolate chip happens to be one of my favorites, if you get a good brand, and Presley also loved it. She liked to pick out all the chips and eat them with her fingers as opposed to licking them, makes sense if you ask me. The chips are kinda different to lick, I usually have my ice cream in a bowl, so I was not opposed to her method.

Lately Presley has been miss sensitive, so I didn't think this cold, wet, sticky ice cream thing would last long, but she ate the entire thing, minus half the cone, and she definatly took her time.

After the first and last photos I took, she would hardly pay attention to me either. I kept trying to talk to her and ask her if she liked it and what not, but she was so busy focusing on eating this strange thing, that she payed no heed to my social butterflyness. Yep, I was ignored. Makes sense though, have you ever eaten a bowl of ice cream in utter silence, just focusing on each bite, truly enjoying what you're tasting? Trust me it's much more satisfying that way. I love ice cream with company too, but it seems like before I know it my spoon is clanking the bottom of the bowl, I don't know where it all went, I'm wondering if ice cream evaporates, and I'm swearing I got short changed on the scoops. And that only leaves me wanting more. Much more theraputic to eat it in silence, so kuddos to presley for figuring this out early on. It will most definatly save her some inches to the waistline.

CURIOSITY OF A CAT

2009-02-28T12:56:00.000-08:00

Well, those of you who do not live in hair for a profession might not understand the curiosity to change one's hair, but I do, and I did. Nothing Permanent, I was just desperately curious to see what my little curly cue would look like with straight hair, well, here's the verdict.I first blow dried it, which only made it bigger, so then I took the flatiron to it, that did the trick, at least for a while. Her sides were only about shoulder length, but the back is super long!It is so amazing to look at her with tight curls above her shoulders all the time and then see how long her hair is really. Weird. After a few hours, the curl started to come back, all on it's own.Usually you have to wash your hair out after using a flatiron to get any curl back, but nope, couple of hours and it was retracting on it's own.Presley was so funny, she would get so frustrated with her hair because it was long and would hang over in her eyes. she would swiftly brush it back and roll her eyes as it fell back forward; hence the boppy pin. Then she was o.k. She seemed to be o.k. with the straight thing, but she did look weird at first. When Conner came around the corner of the room and saw her, he screamed and jumped, and asked " what happened to her?" Funny. And when dad came home his reaction was about the same except for he thought I had a wig on her, nice. Taylor and I are the only true witnesses in this crime. It was a fun experience, probably not one I'll bother going into until she's older and hates her curls, but fun.

And even more funny, when Brandon brought her into the kitchen the next morning laughing, when they entered I knew why. Her hair looked as if I had never touched it. Completely curly once more. That's called good hair.

How old is Grandpa?

2009-02-22T17:01:00.000-08:00

My Sweet Grandmother sent this to me. I thought it was very interesting, and sad at the same time. The world is such a different place. I'm not saying everything in today's world is bad, because with a lot of the technologies we have today, have saved peoples lives, I just thought the information was interesting.

How old is Grandpa?

Stay with this -- the answer is at the end. It will blow you away.
One evening a grandson was talking to his grandfather about current events. The grandson asked his grandfather what he thought about the shootings at schools, the computer age, and just things in general.
The Grandfather replied, 'Well, let me think a minute, I was born before:
' television
' penicillin
' polio shots
' frozen foods
' Xerox
' contact lenses
' Frisbees and
' the pill
There were no:
' credit cards
' laser beams or
' ball-point pens
Man had not invented:
' pantyhose
' air conditioners
' dishwashers
' clothes dryers
' and the clothes were hung out to dry in the fresh air and
' man hadn't yet walked on the moon
Your Grandmother and I got married first, . . and then lived together.
Every family had a father and a mother.
Until I was 25, I called every man older than me, 'Sir'. And after I turned 25, I still called policemen and every man with a title, 'Sir.'
We were before gay-rights, computer- dating, dual careers, daycare centers, and group therapy.
Our lives were governed by the Ten Commandments, good judgment, and common sense.
We were taught to know the difference between right and wrong and to stand up and take responsibility for our actions.
Serving your country was a privilege; living in this country was a bigger privilege.
We thought fast food was what people ate during Lent.
Having a meaningful relationship meant getting along with your cousins.
Draft dodgers were those who closed front doors as the evening breeze started.
Time-sharing meant time the family spent together in the evenings and weekends-not purchasing condominiums.
We never heard of FM radios, tape decks, CDs, electric typewriters, yogurt, or guys wearing earrings.
We listened to Big Bands, Jack Benny, and the President's speeches on our radios.
And I don't ever remember any kid blowing his brains out listening to Tommy Dorsey.
If you saw anything with 'Made in Japan ' on it, it was junk
The term 'making out' referred to how you did on your school exam.
Pizza Hut, McDonald's, and instant coffee were unheard of.
We had 5 &10-cent stores where you could actually buy things for 5 and 10 cents.
Ice-cream cones, phone calls, rides on a streetcar, and a Pepsi were all a nickel.
And if you didn't want to splurge, you could spend your nickel on enough stamps to mail 1 letter and 2 postcards.
You could buy a new Chevy Coupe for $600, . . but who could afford one? Too bad, because gas was 11 cents a gallon.
In my day:
' 'grass' was mowed,
' 'coke' was a cold drink,
' 'pot' was something your mother cooked in and
' 'rock music' was your grandmother's lullaby.
' 'Aids' were helpers in the Principal's office,
' ' chip' meant a piece of wood,
' 'hardware' was found in a hardware store and
' 'software' wasn't even a word.
And we were the last generation to actually believe that a lady needed a husband to have a baby. No wonder people call us 'old and confused' and say there is a generation gap. and how old do you think I am?
I bet you have this old person in mind...you are in for a shock!
Read on to see -- pretty scary if you think about it and pretty sad at the same time. Are you ready ?????
This person would be only 59 years old.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

2009-02-14T13:10:00.000-08:00

O.k people, if you already felt sorry for my family, get this. Brandon has Pneumonia!!! Seriously! Can this be happening? Presley is still recovering and doing well but still has a sinus infection. Conner is rounding out his 20th day on antibiotics for a sinus infection, thank goodness he was on them when all the others got sick. It takes him a full month of antibiotics and steroids to clear just a sinus infection. Pneumonia would have AT LEAST put him in the hospital. And yes Taylor has a sinus infection and the flu. Isn't that why we get flu shots? I swear every year I get a shot, I get the flu, every year. I know the vaccine only covers certain strands, but come on, every year? Next year I'm going without. Yes I have a cold too, but someone has to take care of all these sick helpless people, so that means me. It was a unanimous vote, by far. So, if you were already feeling sorry, feel even more. Gosh I can't wait for warm weather, I'm so sick of germs and having to be in the house stuck with them!

EXHAUSTION

2009-02-07T12:08:00.001-08:00

Well, I truly have felt like I have been in a state of exhaustion lately. I am sooo tired, I can't sleep, which doesn't help the tiredness, I am always nauseated, probably from the lack of sleep, and If I eat, I vomit, from the nausea. vicious cycle. I have also been having back problems. I have had four shots of steroids, yes it hurts, they shoot those right into the muscle that is already killing you. And muscle relaxers have not phased me, so now I get to have physical therapy, but of course when I called to set up the appointment they are booked out the for the next five weeks. Is that humane? Five more weeks of horrible back pain with nothing to relieve it? Once again, vicious cycle.

My Little Presley has had a semi cold for a while, you know the usual runny nose, teething thing. Well I did the normal routine; ran the humidifier, Tylenol, cuddles and kisses and waited it out. A couple days ago I herd her hacking up a lung in the middle of the night. I went and got her, and recognized the cough, but dismissed it, until in the morning when she started up the cough again. I was right with the recognition, I was convinced it was croup, she has had it before. I ran the humidifier again and called the doctor. Of course they were booked, and the last thing on my list that day was the walk in clinic. Well after her nap, which was short she felt so warm to me so I took her temp, 103.1 I called the doctor again and they told me to take her to the walk in NOW. So, I cancelled everything and went in. Of course the walk in wait time was over an hour, doesn't surprise me. I waited exactly over an hour and finally we got her in. After Chest x-ray's the doctor confirmed; Pneumonia. What? I asked him, all of this just came on, today, besides the runny nose, which I thought was teething. They gave her a shot, strong antibiotic, and sent us home with more liquid antibiotics.

Well, Presley is my spitter, no matter how much I fought her, she spit. I disguised it in food, juice, milk, pudding, yogurt, everything. No take. I called the pharmacy and asked for some suggestions. They told me to put it in chocolate milk cause the chocolate masks the taste the best, but then of course you have to get her to drink the whole thing or you don't know how much of the antibiotic she got. Well, tried it, she took one sip, and threw it on the floor, looked at me in disgust, and said NO. NO JUICE. She calls every drink juice. Well, it was late of course, all that time at the walk in. So i put her to bed, ran the humidifier and called the doc in the morning. The doc looked at the x-ray over the phone, took into consideration her fever was still over 102 and she was spitting all her meds, even the Tylenol, and told me to bring her in now. So once again, I cancelled two hair appointments, a sinus CT, an IEP meeting at the school, and headed in around ten. Got in got the usual work up, confirmed the pneumonia was junking up her lungs more and she spit all the meds they tried to give her. So next step was hydration. Now, many of you know I have been in the medical industry for 4 weeks shy of 8 years, but this day was horrific. I have been through much more trauma with Conner, but he is chronically ill, so I have done it many many times; you get use to it. Not the terror you feel from watching your child in pain, I will feel that the rest of my life, but you get use to the fact that this is chronic and I have to stay strong. My little Presley has never tested my emotions in this area. Of course she screams as soon as the nurse puts her gloves on. I had to pin her down, why do they make the mom do this?, I will not go into detail, because this post would go forever, but they tried FOUR times! And the whole time she screamed daddy. Of course I cried, it's just horrible to have to pin a child to a bed and watch them look at you with frightened eyes, screaming for you, and to not be able to do a thing. After FIVE tries I told them they needed to let her rest. She instantly fell asleep, so exhausted. Meanwhile I called Brandon, he was in town with work, and I told him the story and he needed to come for her, she wanted him. So covered in cow poop, he came, just like a night in shinning armor. As soon as he walked in, Presley woke up, balled daddy and lunged for him. Well not too long after his arrival they vowed they needed to get the iv in. I stepped outside with Taylor, who was tired of the screaming and waited. Another HALF HOUR of screaming passed! I went to the doctor and asked her just how long they intended to try this it was becoming inhumane. She assured me they needed to get it in, hydrate her and get the antibiotic in to attack the pneumonia. I waited again. Finally!!!! The iv was in. after reentering the room, it was brought to my attention they had tried two more times, SIX times people, SIX. And An hour and a half to do it! Ridiculous. Presley lunged for me this time, which made me feel a little better, and I just held her. Propped over my shoulder, she fell asleep. The nurse informed my the fluids would take two hours to run in, of course.

I then had to have brandon check conner out of school and take him back to work with him because he had no ride, and taylor stayed with me.

Well we got the first bag in and hung the second. The nurse told me she was putting the antibiotic in this bag, now that she was semi hydrated it would work better. Not ten minutes after, Presley awoke screaming. I tried for twenty minutes to calm her down, no luck. I looked at her arm and it looked a little swollen. I grabbed the nurse and told her and she just said, it's o.k. the tape just looks tight cause they have to secure it good, but she didn't physically look at her arm. I continually tried to console her, but could not. And of course everyone who walked by or in, we were in the trauma room, looked at me like I couldn't control my kid. I knew something was wrong with her arm, I looked again and it was HUGE, the tape was cutting into her arm on both ends, and I turned her arm over and there was this HUGE bubble in her arm, it looked like her arm was gonna pop. It was really discolored too. I yelled for the nurse and made her look at the arm and stated the was not just a tight tape issue. She looked a the arm, gasped, ran out of the room and returned with the doctor. The doctor immediately removed the IV, meanwhile the nurse apologized for not looking at the arm to make sure the iv was properly placed. I love this nurse, she is always so good to me, but I was mad at the situation. The doctor stated that the vein was blown, duh, and all that fluid was just being pumped into her arm, causing it to swell. well, it was so swollen cause the tape on both ends of her arm was trapping the fluid in between her wrist and about two inches from her elbow. After they de-taped her which was another scream fest, her arm looked horrible. I was then informed of some super duper news. because they had just put the antibiotic in and they had to stop the iv, they would have to give her a shot, yes a shot. So not only a shot from the night before, six shots covering her arms and hands, we got to add another one to her leg. I was pissed.

So, after five and a half hours in the trauma room, I packed up my poor Presley and Taylor and headed to the pharmacy where I was told my prescription of another antibiotic would be waiting cause they faxed it an hour ago. Yep, you guessed it, no fax, no prescription. So, I parked myself in the waiting room and waited a half hour for the fax, and another half hour for the meds. Yes, that's six and a half hours now in the clinic. which also seemed longer because Taylor chose to lay on a waiting room table kicking and crying because I couldn't get her a drink of milk. I explained they did not sell those in the pop machine, but she didn't by it. 20 month old crying in pain on shoulder, four year old crying and kicking on table in crowded waiting room; exhausted, upset mom.

Oh. I almost forgot. before I left, the doctor pulled me aside and told me I needed to watch her arm like a hawk. If there was any redness at the site, or any red streaks, take her to the ER immediately. I inquired of course. So happens when that much fluid is trapped in a small spot for that long, it is a breeding ground for infection, a serious one.

I headed home with her wrapped up in a blanket cause her arm was so swollen I couldn't get her coat on. I tried to give her her meds last night, she threw them up, and spit. I tried to give her ibuprofen to bring her fever down, spit. held her down, threw it up. I held her a long time, she slept with me for a while during the night and this morning. I tried to give her her meds today, spit. Thought I would mix it up and use a spoon instead of a syringe. she swung at me and knocked it all over the floor. This antibiotic in particular is very concentrated so she only gets three doses, making it easier on both of us. well, one dose just ended up on the floor, I retrieved another dose, inhumanely held her down and forced her to take it, and she threw up. So two doses gone one left and the first day. Now it is a weekend, no more shots, not enough antibiotic, still a fever, still crying, still on my shoulder. I bet i know where I'll end up this weekend, and if for some reason we don't go to the ER, I have to call monday to state the loss of the antibiotic and I'm sure they'll have me bring her in for another shot. Horrific.

So to sum it all up, as if this wasn't a long post anyway. Six times for iv, Seven hours by the time I got home. Huge swollen infant arm, shots, fever, vomit, spitting, no antibiotic left, because of the spitting and vomiting, no sleep, no eating , little drinking, dehydration, poor poor helpless baby, still propped over my shoulder. Two days of horrific experiences to provide no medical care significant enough to attack the pneumonia, threat of hospitalization, call on monday, possible ER visit before monday, and now a serious infection to worry about.

I would post pics, but one you don't want to see my face and two, my baby is still crying over my shoulder. i feel it would be inhumane to photo her now.

EXHAUSTION, for everyone.

DUM - DUM

2009-02-03T09:26:00.000-08:00

Why is it that the only time you turn your back for something, like a must something, answering the phone, bathroom break, switching the laundry, doorbell, important things of life; why is it at these small moments my children choose to put their escape plan into speed mode and get into trouble? I mean honestly they must be planning and planning and then holding that thought for the precise moment mom turns her back, not on the children, but for such as those things of life. My little curly cue is the planner and the expediter, of such plans as these.

I of course hid the bag of dum-dum's but I have been figured out again, because all the things I seem to hide, are the ones that get found, imagine that. Yes, Presley and all her sweetness found my suckers, and by the time I returned from my "important" thing, which was not long, she had tested about twelve suckers, most of them stuck to the floor now.I couldn't help but laugh as I watched her taste one, throw it on the floor and dig for another. I guess she just couldn't decide which flavor she liked, and thanks to the manufacturer of the super sticky Dum-Dum, she had MANY to taste, just so many flavors. Of course she was a super sticky mess, and required a bath. And after the bath when I was adding one more thing to my list of tasks for the day, while I was scrubbing the floor, by hand, because the mop couldn't get the massive circle of stick off, I began to realize why they call them Dum-Dums. Not for just a unique name, but so importantly called that for the mom that put them within child's reach. DUM-DUM.

Also, for all you fitness fanatics out there, my dear husband bought this membership at the college on a silent auction. He payed forty dollars for it. It is a FREE 3 month membership to 123 fit. It includes personal trainer. For new members only. I would soooo love to use this, but my husband/student is never home, and when he is, he has to study. I cannot use it during the day because they don't have a daycare. And after I put the kids down to bed, I'm tired and one more trip into town is a waste of gas for me way out here in the country. So sadly, I am looking for someone who would like to purchase this pass. forty dollars is a great deal for 3 months, and no membership fee. If anyone is interested, let me know. Happy Exercising!

STAND

2009-01-27T10:06:00.000-08:00

Lately I have been thinking a lot, about alot of things, and recently I spoke to a friend about troubles, life, giggles, hard times good times, and how we seem to get through everyday life, no matter what comes our way. Some times we deal with life in reasons we are not sure of and sometimes we are sure we are doing everything right. This blog thing is great for journaling, and i want to look back on this some day and read not only milestones of my kids and life, but how I get from one spot to another, sometimes it's quick, and sometimes it's slow. Being a parent is fun, joyous, hard and sorrowful at times. I never thought I would have to grieve about my children the way i do. I guess before you begin you don't truly realize how much you will truly love and bond and protect your children. of course I new those things would happen, but to what extent, i have underestimated. I truly feel like a lioness on the discovery channel protecting her cubs at all cost. Not just with my kids and trials at home, but friends, family, aquaintences, myself, it all feels like a constant circle of protection. I feel for those without family and friends. we all need them and it can deteriorate ourselves to not have them. I know at times life has been hard for me, trials have been tough, still are. People come and go. some are meant to stay and some are meant to help us and move on. I think one of my new years resolutions, yes i know it's almost february, but I have decided to help recognize all the people who come into my life, even just for a short time. I have people, complete strangers, come into my life and not quite understand why, only for years later to feel the effects of that situation.

Some of you that know me well, hopefully some of you do, know i really love music, lyrics in particular. I relate life to music. New song came to my life lately and i just love it. Sorry for all you country haters, but it's Rascal Flatts; STAND. After talking to my friend, this song really hit home for me.

'Cause when push comes to shove
You taste what you're made of
You might bend till you break
'Cause it's all you can take
On your knees you look up
Decide you've had enough
You get mad, you get strong
Wipe your hands, shake it off
Then you Stand

Life's like a novel with the end ripped out
The edge of a canyon with only one way down
Take what you're given, before it's gone
And start holdin on, keep holdin on

Everytime you get up

And get back in the race

One more small piece of you

Starts to fall into place

Then you stand

I like this song because it helps me to know that it doesn't matter how many times we are down, sometimes we fall, sometimes we're kicked, whatever, but we always have the option to stand. These are only a few of the reasons I stand. But some of the most important ones as well.

For perhaps my children, grandchildren, or who ever else is interested in my life when I'm old and retired from it and it's time to go home, I want them to know why I stood, why I stand. These are the reasons I Stand.

ALL GROWN UP

2009-01-22T16:47:00.001-08:00

My baby has grown up, as so many of us mothers say. Presley was tired of her little chair we had her in ( the ones you hook to the table) and her little legs were definitely getting to big, so we started putting her up in a big chair. she loves it.
From the time Presley was eating solids, unless she gets to feed herself, she doesn't eat. Still that way. She definitely makes a mess, but what 18 month old doesn't right? Oatmeal is her thing right now, and just my favorite thing to clean up. I can't stand that maple syrup smell that just seems to linger around everytime we have pancakes, and the maple oatmeal is just the same.
Most of the time she gets a bath immediately following breakfast because the amount that ends up on her clothes, hair, and pj's opposed to her belly is phenomenal. But hey, she can't help that she has big hair, so that one is to be expected. Sometimes I wonder if she actually got full, but she seems to thrive al right, so I guess we're good.

It is so fun that they make little spoons for little people so they can do it all by themselves. I wish someone would invent an easier way to clean up the sticky gooey messes, but I guess soap, water, and a rag is all that has evolved. I bought one of those bibs that catch all the food they drip in the bottom of the bib, but cleaning that pool out was worse for me than just pulling off the jammies and dunking her into the tub. mostly because they don't have a special bib for little girls with big hair. It was funny though because when she was done eating we would get her down and her little legs would be so asleep from sitting on them that she couldn't put them down to walk, poor thing. So as soon as it was official she was going to be a big kid chair eater, we purchased another chair, and a booster. She still has to feed herself, she still likes oatmeal, the maple kind, she still wears most of it, and she still requires a bath. So basically from this growth period we have only emptied our wallet for a new chair for the table and emptied again for the booster, and still have to clean up the same mess, but for Presley and her Independence,

Priceless.

THE BOX

2009-01-16T16:00:00.001-08:00

So Christmas time has come and gone, and all the new arrivals sit in their correct spots collecting dust, because why? Well, because of the box.

It all started with a small set of crayons. Three crayons for each little box color er.Conner was definitely the instigator of this art project. He is my artist, my little Mr. detail. He is very good at what he does too, if any of you have seen a drawing of an airplane or tractor by the artist, you would agree. I hope he is the next Vincent Van Gogh.Taylor soon jumped in on the fun, and she is my ms. colorful, making sure all the crayons are used and the colors are uniquely spread throughout. Maybe she'll be into fashion?Presley, my little ms. destruct-o lately, tried to color, but she was more interested in destroying the box. They finally convinced her to play inside the box and that is where she remained, for a very long time. Her fate is yet to be decided. Maybe she'll help people stay put with things, finances, counseling, who knows. Help people realize where they are at in life is just o.k. ? We'll see.After the box was covered in unique scenery, a flashlight was retrieved and the fun began inside the box, imagine that. I'm glad we had a big box to fit everyone in, taking turns would have been out of the question.So here are my little one's box. Yep a box. Equipped with air holes so they could breathe while inside the box, of course a definite necessity. Let me clarify; this is NOT a new Christmas present, or something i payed for, it's a box. Our new found friend was created about a week ago, and per request of the tantrums that were thrown when I moved the box, here it resides, in my living room, a week later going on strong, a box.

I think next year I will purchase three brand new boxes, wrap them each with a set of crayons, and stuff them under the tree.

CHRISTMAS

2009-01-02T09:18:00.000-08:00

Christmas is just one of those holidays i can't decide if i truly enjoy. I love to see family, make good food, and watch those very exciting creations that the kids bring home from school, but as soon as the Christmas season is here, i can't help but think how many people do not get to have Christmas. I am one of those that think there are too many gifts, too many parties, too much laughter. I am one of those that think there is too much sorrow for some, too much hype, too little giving, and too little recognition of what Christmas is all about. I tried hard this year to really concentrate on the true meaning of Christmas. A family tradition of my families, that I have extended to Brandon and I and our kids is the gift of giving. Every year we try to help others have a better Christmas season, it isn't much, but we try. One year we gave clothing to some kids in much need, with a holiday meal. another year we did the twelve days of Christmas to a family in need. Last year we bought warm articles of clothing and tried to give them to our "homeless" man. many of you know who he is. He refused my gifts, which made me sad, but i felt good for trying. So then I bought him a meal at MC Donald's without him knowing and had the worker deliver it to him as i left. He smiled, and sat and ate it. best gift i have witnessed in a long time. a smile from someone in need. Most of the time we give things discreetly, but this was a bitter sweet moment for me, to see the gratitude from a receiver. Last year the kids and I also took names off of the moses lake clinic tree and bought gifts for some kids. My kids had so much fun going to the store and choosing things and then dropping them off, just as Santa would do. They had a blast. This year we also helped a family in need. These are the things I thrive on during this season, but i just can't help but think it's not enough. I love the look of snow, from the inside of my house, I love hot chocolate, I love dressing up for parties, I love Christmas food, I love lights, trees and, mangers. I just tend to have a dampened spirit about the need in this world that so many forget, or feel they can't make a difference. I guess I love the true meaning of Christmas, but am saddened by the way we celebrate it. It's just a catch 22 with me.

Anyway, We decided to spend Christmas with family in Utah this year. Wow, what a drive. It was a blizzard! We left at 6:30 Sunday morning, and did not arrive until 1:00 a.m. the next morning! It was horrible. We had to go about 45 mph basically the whole way. I think we got above 55 for about half hour at one point, but that's all. We kept having to pull over and try to unfreeze the wiper fluid, cause the pump would freeze and we couldn't get fluid out to wipe our windshield. There were sooooo many people off the side of the road, and several rollovers. To say the least, it was traumatic, especially for the kids. But we all did arrive safe and sound, just not very pleasant until we slept a few hours.

Here are the kids with Grandma Beyeler, Grandma LU for short.

Me and My Grandma, I just love her, she is so full of life. She just goes and goes. I lost my Grandfather several years ago, and I still remember so much about him and how much I miss him. This year I truly reflected on eternal families.

We enjoyed seeing all our relatives. I saw cousins I have not seen in 8 years. and I enjoyed seeing my grandparents. Each time I see them is precious, life is so short.

Here is my grandma Betty and grandpa Kent. I love them so much too. It is always a blessing to get together with my grandparents, from both sides, I have been lucky to have grown up with them.

We also took the kiddos down to temple square one night. we had been out to eat and weren't sure if the kids would last because we took them to a mini carnival all day, but we drug them through and they were amazed at what they saw.

Conner's first request was to see the conference center. We have never seen the inside since it was completed, and he was amazed. We were ten minutes too late for the last tour of the evening, maybe next time. We headed to the tabernacle next, and it was all set up for the Christmas session on Sunday. We sat there for a long time and then when we told Conner it was time to move on he said." Well, we have to wait for them to sing." Poor thing thought the choir was going to come out and sing.

We took them over through the lights, and it was freezing cold, but somehow the atmosphere seems to distract you. We caught this picture of Conner and Taylor in front of the temple. Taylor asked me if that was the castle I got married in. I told her yes, and she said one day she would get married in that castle too. Innocent and sweet are the little ones.

I have more photos of our trip and will post them as soon as I retrieve them all. We had a good trip all in all. Cousins played, adults laughed, and families gathered. Christmas.

GOOD MORNING BEAUTIFUL

2008-12-17T20:26:00.000-08:00

Good morning beautiful, how was your night, mine was wonderful with you by my side. Well, those of you who have not heard that famous song, it's a good one, but my night was just not quite as good. Does anyone else have these problems? yes, this is MY bed. It started with Presley at about four-ish, then by five we had three girls in, and by six Conner joined us And of course no one ever went back to sleep, how much fun would that have been? loads, i know. So, it was Saturday and the kiddos wanted something special for breakfast, and they wanted to make it. One of our fun things to eat on a Saturday is egg-in-toast. Simply stated, you butter both sides of the bread, cut a hole in the middle with a cup, and crack the egg in the middle. Sound gross? It's so good. You let it cook till brown on underside, then flip, carefully. All done, egg and toast all in one. less mess, and kids get a kick out of cutting holes in the bread.

After breakfast, it had snowed and the kids were soooo excited to go play in it. there wasn't much, but they had fun. Taylor was a little skeptical at first, but Conner showed her the ropes.

Snow angels, a classic. Kids, snow, hot chocolate, all so much fun. Hopefully we get more snow, so we can build snowmen. they tried, but it was a very little snowman.

Angels they all are. whether it's four, five or six in the morning.

DRINKIN AND DRIVIN

2008-12-02T20:23:00.000-08:00

We have this car. All the kids love it. Thrift shop find, finally, best buy ever. It has endured many drives, and lately it's been presley's passion. The blue car resides outside, but we were having a problem with it's location. Every time I would go outside to the car, presley would kick and squirm, and yes, cry to get down. She wanted to ride in HER car. Then the same thing would happen when I arrived home and entered the house. I am on the go A LOT so, this was becoming annoying, and frustrating for poor presley. So, i broke down, hosed off the car, and hauled it into the house. Presley loved it, i am clearly her best friend lately, and she spends most of her play time in this car. The other kids try to play in it, but she is very territorial with her blue car. When i give her snacks, she eats them in the car. When i give her a drink, she carts it to the car, and so on.

It has been a great help to me as well, cause when I have some thing to do, I just get the car and she's set. I find myself getting more things done lately, weird. I have been reluctant to announce the great news we have had at our house. I know what yall are thinking, and NO I am NOT pregnant. Presley is walking, yeah!!! Life is so much more grand, except for when we are at walmart and she wants to walk. traffic jams with a slow walker. She is really good at it too, very steady, quite fast, and thinks she's cool. When I congratulated her on her new milestone this is the expression I recieved.

Priceless.

Our little presley is so proud of herself, and we are too. we were worried there for a minute. almost 18 months old, but she pulled through, at ther own pace.

Rascal flatts, one of my favorite songs, My wish. " My wish for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to. your dreams stay big, your worries stay small, You never need to carry more than you can hold. And while you're out there getting where you're getting to, I hope you know that somebody loves you."

Wherever she goes in her little blue car, and beyond i hope she always knows we love her.

HOW THIRSTY ARE WE?

2008-11-20T16:40:00.000-08:00

So, as many of you know I had a little escapade last Sunday and got to take a nice little ride in the ambulance, with a good looking paramedic I might add, You never know who reads your blog anymore, so hopefully his wife doesn't read mine! Anyway, if you don't know about it, don't ask, and if you do, don't tell, and if you watched, I am truly sorry for having to expose you all, i know it was painful to watch, but just think it was much more embarrassing for me than for you! Anyway, with blood sugar out of whack, blood pressure out of whack and dehydration fixed, i feel almost brand new. not really, but better. So the blood sugar and pressure were easily fixed with medication, but as i came to find out in my stay at the lovely ER, there is no medicine, other than iv's to fix dehydration, which brings me to the meaning of my post. How thirsty are we? I mean, really I just don't like to drink water. I only like it when I'm sweating after workout, or if I vacuum the whole house and I'm wearing a sweatshirt doing it. I'm just not a big water drinker, in fact if i drink more than sips, it make me gag, weird huh? Well, anyway, after my little escapade on Sunday, i vowdged to take this problem under control, which in lighter terms means, I have to drink more water. I thought I was drinking enough, i usually drink 32 oz. or more a day, but clearly that is not enough. So the last few days I've been drinking ONLY water. No milk, no pop, no juice, just water. It's been gross, and hard. I filled up a 2 liter pitcher and decided to see how much I could possibly drink in a day. I am on the go a lot, a lot, so i have been filling up a water bottle out of my pitcher to get an accurate take as to how much I consume. The first day I didn't do so well. I felt like I drank a ton! But looking at the picture, ah, not so much.

I just keep telling myself it's half, but still, i need to do better. I just feel so full when i drink that much. Maybe that's why they tell you to drink more water and it'll improve your health as well as your weight eh? I do hear often that we often mistake our bodies hunger cues. often we are actually thirsty, not hungry. So they say when you feel hungry, drink first, wait twenty minutes, and if you're still hungry then eat. Wow, if I'm really hungry twenty minutes is a long time! But i am going to try to do better. So day two, I did much better.
I know this one is hard to see, but the water line is just under the handle, yeah for me! I have noticed though that I have to pee a lot during the night, which is cramping up my sleep time, so I figure I need to get it all in by about seven. That's a lot of water to get in by seven, at least for me. I am sorry I do not have a picture of an empty pitcher yet. I have been working on it for a few days, and almost had it last night, but felt like vomiting, I know TMI. I guess I need to get my body use to drinking all this clear, healthy, good for you substance we call water. So, i know there are you die hards out there who probably drink two pitchers a day!, but my challenge to myself as to anyone else who does not want to be exposed to people they have to see every Sunday, or to people who just plain out want to make a healthy change in life; my challenge to all of us is to drink! More water of course, cheers!

FOREVER CRAFT

2008-11-18T21:20:00.001-08:00

So, last year, or the year before that, yes I think it was two years ago, at a super saturday they made these personalized clocks. My mother-in-law made some for her girls, and i wanted one. i have been researching these since then, yes two years. they use to get the clock part from walmart, they were tables and you just didn't use the legs, but of course walmart no longer carried them. I looked all over for these, could find no where. i also tried to find the fancy hands, but the distributor would not let out her secret, she sold these clocks and did not want me stealing business, understandable. I have been recently distraught because all of my friends have these, so whenever I visit, i have to covet, which we are not suppose to do right? anyway, i was killing time one afternoon and wandered into the senior center, i know, gotta love the senior center. well, after following a lady around the store for 25 minutes hoping she would ditch the shelving she had in her cart, she finally checked out, giving me no hope for getting it. So, I wandered around the back and in the back corner of the senior center was my beauty, my waiting for, my covet. I quickly looked around as if someone would if they were stealing something and then ran for it, i had this sick sense in my gut that there were all these other people running for it too, even though I was the only person in the room. I snatched the table, paid seven bucks for it, praised the senior center for their wide variety of items, and checked out. I actually tried to get them to discount it if i took the legs off, i told them i only needed the top, but the lady just looked at me weird and said " um, no." oh well, i still bought it. I quickly went to work on this two year long craft. I could not have done it without my friends though. thanks to bethany, who lent her clock to me for getting an idea for the hands, thanks to korbi, for her cricket cutter for my letters, and thanks to my hubby for his graphing skills, which got it all layed out! yeah. I of course picked out the paint, and crackled it, which was a first for me. After two long years, my clock is done, and is hanging on my wall, for the rest of time. I love my friends, my hubby, my eye for good buys, and my ability to be determined to do something, no matter how long it takes. Now all we have to do is get our own house so we can paint the walls! And good thing is, I no longer have to covet, yeah for me.

MY FETISH

2008-11-12T19:18:00.000-08:00

O.k everyone has some kind of fetish in life, some kind of thing that is just their thing, it's just what they do. Some people love crafts, dining out, flowers etc.... Well, my love in life is shoes, yep shoes. love em' So ever since we moved into this rental, we have a small closet, and besides the fact that I moved my "summer" shoes into a tub in storage, the closet just still can't hold all my shoes. I have been threatening Brandon that i was gonna go buy a shelf to at least fit half of them, i was just so tired of all the shoes all over the closet floor, and it made it soooo difficult to find the mate to the shoe you wanted, our prime reason for being late to church! Being the handy man Brandon is, he just doesn't buy whatever he can build himself, and he gets a kick, as well as an ego boost when he does build it.So, Because it was a holiday yesterday Brandon didn't have school, and he was so nice to opt out of working and spend the day with us. it was very nice and much needed. Well, after a trip to Lowe's he was off to the saw and the measuring. He let me peek a few times and it was looking pretty darn good. i was assured this would work out. after Brandon informed me there were over 73 pairs of shoes, not including my tub in the basement, i knew i had to take charge here and part with some of my collection. I mean honestly, who wears 75 pairs of shoes, well i do, just not on a regular basis. So, after a lot of thought and consideration, i picked out my favorite pairs and put the rest in a sack for goodwill. the sack is actually still sitting just outside by bedroom door, just in case i change my mind on any! I will be strong. well, after Brandon got done, this is what our fabulous shoe shelf looked like. Sorry, you can't get the full affect. the closet is quite long, the doors just aren't wide, dang it. Well, i was impressed, but Brandon insisted we return to Lowe's he needed another shelf and a few more things, so we headed out. after he locked himself in our room for a bit longer, he once again let me in for the finished project. Now, when i first saw the shelves, they were just like this, but when i went in again, the doors were shut, funny i thought, but oh well. so he stood back and said go ahead, pull them open and take a look. well, i opened that closet door and WHAM! I stepped into wonderland!
Yes, all you shoe lovers out there, this is a LIGHTED shoe shelf! Brandon ran lights under the shelves so every time i open the closet, my shoes light up, for a quick find of course! This picture was taken with the lights off, but it is still awesome with the lights on, and the best part, it's a motion sensor, so every time i open the doors, Bing! lights on! ready to choose. Isn't my husband awesome? This is soo cool for someone who loves shoes! Today I sat in front of the doors and kept opening and closing them, just to watch the lights, so cool! I love my hubby, and his ability to build fantastic stuff, saves us money, and brings out creativity, love it! love it! love it! These pictures hardly give it justice too, so my closet is open to whoever wants to indulge their fetish of shoes as well!

LIFE

2008-11-03T20:57:00.000-08:00

Sometimes, o.k. well, all the time i find how I'm feeling through music. some call it musically inclined, others fell like lyrics are just lyrics, it's what sells the song, but i have always been able to express myself through music. I have been thinking a lot lately, about a lot of things. life, trials, why's, when's, how's, can's, cant's. a lot. i heard this song a while ago, and it has really stuck with me. it's a great inspiration to me and the path of life I'm on right now. Sometimes we are given lemons, sometimes we make great lemonade, sometimes we can't remember how to make lemonade, and frankly sometimes we make crappy lemonade. But I truly believe that trials make us stronger, I am a witness to this, and I truly believe that Faith makes us stronger. without faith, we have nothing. so, this is my song for now, and maybe it will be someone else's song out there too.

Hurry up and wait
So close, but so far away
Everything that you've always dreamed of
Close enough for you to taste But you just can't touch
You wanna show the world but no one knows your name yet,
Your wonderin' when and where and how you're gonna make it
You know you can if you get the chance
In your face theres a door keeps slamming
Now you're feeling more and more frustrated
And you're getting all kind of impatient waiting
We live and we learn to take
[ Chorus ]
One step at a time There's no need to rush
It's like learning to fly Or falling in love
It's gonna happen when it's Supposed to happen
that we Find the reasons why
One step at a time

You believe and you doubt
You're confused, you got it all figured out
Everything that you always wished for
Could be, should be, would be yours If they only knew
You wanna show the world but no one knows your name yet,
Your wonderin' when and where and how you're gonna make it
You know you can if you get the chance
In your face theres a door keeps slamming
Now you're feeling more and more frustrated
And you're getting all kind of impatient waiting
We live and we learn to take
[ Chorus ]
One step at a time
There's no need to rush
It's like learning to fly Or falling in love
It's gonna happen when it's Supposed to happen
that we Find the reasons why
One step at a time

When you can't wait any longer
But there's no end in sight
It's your faith that makes you stronger
The only way you get there Is one step at a time
[ Chorus ]
Take one step at a time
There's no need to rush
It's like learning to fly Or falling in love
It's gonna happen when it's Supposed to happen
that we Find the reasons why
One step at a time
[ Chorus ]
One step at a time
There's no need to rush
It's like learning to fly Or falling in love
It's gonna happen when it's Supposed to happen
that we Find the reasons why
One step at a time

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

2008-11-01T21:48:00.000-07:00

This year we had a monster, a witch, and a flower. Funny cause Conner has worn this costume for four years! when i pulled it out of the box, he said "mom i wanna be sully again" ( sully from monsters inc.) I said " oh honey, i doubt this costume will fit you this year, it was almost too small last year. While I was retrieving Presley the flower costume, Conner came running back into the room, fully clothed as Sully and proclaimed that the costume in deed still fit, and he was going to wear it. So to say the least, each year I take a Halloween photo and each year everyone is something new, and then there's sully. we have definitely received our money from the purchase of this costume!
We went to the stake carnival, i took chili, but was 12 minutes late and was told they had just finished the judging for the chili cook-off. what ever happened to Mormon standard time? I was sad, but by the end of the night all my chili was gone, so that's what mattered. The kids had fun running around at the carnival, we won three raffle prizes, Conner won the costume contest for the 5-8 year olds, there was like 50 kids!, and Brandon won the fast pitch baseball game, 72mph, wow. The evening was great. The kids went out again the next night, but only for about an hour. we imposed on the Aho neighborhood for our trick or treating. there were a lot of kids and we got to catch up with some friends we have not chatted with in a long time. Taylor insisted I be a witch with her. She was suppose to wear the hat with the hair, but after wearing it to school, she said it itched her head and she wanted to switch me hats.
Funny thing was, i wore it to the stake carnival, and no one recognized me. hopefully i have long silky, shiny, grey hair when i get old, fabulous. Brandon did not want to dress up, but he did pose for a Halloween photo.
Scary, huh? Halloween is always fun, especially for the kids. pumpkins, corn stalks, candy, costumes, what more could kids have fun with. I was so disappointed when i went into walmart BEFORE Halloween and all the Halloween decor was shoved into one isle, and all the CHRISTMAS stuff has taken over! Isn't there another holiday in between, an important one? Oh yeah, THANKSGIVING! We will be celebrating thanksgiving, before we think about Christmas, apparently we'll just have to do it fast. Happy Halloween!

HAIR TO SPARE

2008-10-26T21:00:00.000-07:00

As most of you know, Presley has hair, lots of it. She was born with thick black of night hair, and over her last 16 months it has lightened dramatically and grown, and then grown again. Most of the time her curls are fabulous, the kind most of us covet. straight want curly, curly want straight, but to say the least the girls got great hair. It's also great for me because I have to only wet it and it's done. No blow dryer, no iron, no gel, no braids, no brushing. which leads me to my next photo, brushing. When i get Presley out of the tub, i put some conditioner in her hair to remove the tangles then i simply comb through it and leave it. Well, the other night Brandon and I wanted to see what it would look like if we combed it when it was dry. Well, the photo explains it all. And she still had curl, it would have been even bigger, but it bounces back pretty quick. We love our little Presley, and we love her big hair.
I also wanted to take a photo of all the kids together, which I have attempted many times, but have failed. three kids all photo ready anytime, on the count of cheese, nope just not happening. I took this photo, best one in a long time, only took me half hour to get it, but it's done, and now I can scratch walmart photo studio off my list, yeah for me.
Yeah, I'm not all into the matching outfits and the special photo day, i like them simple, real, and in ordinary settings. and to me, that's priceless.

SUPER SATURDAY

2008-10-21T20:22:00.000-07:00

So, super Saturday was last Saturday, and I decided to go. i didn't plan on going, but I packed up the kids, made sack lunches and headed out. I decided the night before to make truffles, Oreo truffles. I had these once before, and they were divine. I stayed up till midnight trying to get the white chocolate to drizzle over the tops, but it just wouldn't. i was ready to toss them, all 75 of them in the trash, but Brandon decided after all that work we should just put dots on the top with a spoon. So, after several hours of chocolate melting, rolling, and dipping we got it done.

i know they aren't really pretty, but no one complained cause all 75 were gone! I only got one! These are pretty easy to make, except for my handicap with the white chocolate, and they are even better to eat. cream cheese, Oreo's, and chocolate, that's it.

Also, while I was there i got to squeeze in to do a fall flower arrangement, thanks to Janelle. I have never really made an arrangement this big, so it took me a while, but it was fun, and I think it looks o.k.

The kids are excited for Halloween, and I'm sure we'll be making our traditional Halloween sugar cookies. No wonder October through January we pack on the pounds, every thing's about eating! Oh well, we'll just make another ridiculous new year's resolution to not do it again. Cheers.

BLESSINGS

2008-10-18T15:58:00.000-07:00

Friday I received some phenomenal news from Conner's cardiologist ( heart specialist ). For those of you who have forgotten, or simply did not know, Conner has had a VSD( Ventricular Septal Defect), aka "hole" in his heart. We have been watching this for seven and a half years, to see if it would stabilize and close on it's own, or grow and get bigger requiring heart surgery to repair it. I received a phone call from Conner's cardiologist and their team and they said they reviewed Conner's last echo cardiogram ( basically an ultrasound on your heart ) and the VSD has closed substantially. the hole is too small to repair now and will most likely close all the way on it's own. we have reduced his visits now and will just go routinely once a year to have it checked, which is so good for us because we see seven other specialists bi monthly. This has been very exciting, and humbling news for us, and we feel so blessed. I have been stressed about the steps backward we have taken with his growth lately and this has been a major step forward. few steps forward, few steps back. We are happy and healthy and ready for whatever may come our way. We have learned sooo many things from our angel and we are grateful for everyday he gets to spend with us. We are grateful for technology, for without it, he would not be here. We are grateful for all the medical professionals who give of their time and talents to improve the quality of ones life. And we are grateful for all those who have come into our lives and helped us along our way.

Bless all of you and your families that you might experience some of the joy we have been able to experience in our lives. we love you.

"DO NOT GO WHERE THE PATH MAY LEAD,

GO INSTEAD WHERE THERE IS NO PATH AND

LEAVE A TRAIL."

Ralph Waldo Emerson

QUILT

2008-10-15T10:53:00.000-07:00

So, I checked this quilt out, and it's awesome! I know the chances of me winning it are slim, very very slim, I've never been the lucky winner, but what the heck, we'll see. It was very cute and I have been sulking lately about not having a home made quilt. No one in my family quilts, and the ones I've seen and offered to buy, no one will sell them; people make them for family members, not outsiders. So I'll hope I win, but lucky be the person that does, and then I'll go on another quilt hunt. I should probably just learn myself and solve the problem, but who has the time or patience to teach me? probably no one. cheers to the contest!

KIDS

2008-10-13T22:04:00.001-07:00

So I have learned a lot from my dear, sweet children, sometimes more than I want to know, sometimes things I should know, And sometimes things i never thought I wanted to know. i have been super busy lately, and have not had a lot of free time to blog, but today I had a highlight from conner and thought i'd better share so we can look back on this conversation later in life and laugh. So, we are driving home from school and the kids are in the back, that's so nice cause then I can vaugly hear the quarreling. Anyway, Conner says " Mom, when am I gonna get my fur" i laughed and said " Honey, people don't have fur, animals have fur, people have hair" He then said " Well, when am I gonna get my fur?" I stated again" Honey, we don't have fur, we have hair, and your's is on your head" Conner then says " Well, how come daddy has fur?" I was scared to answer that, afraid of what he was getting at, but I laughed and said" Conner, Daddy doesn't have fur." More irritated that I was arguing with him and he was determined to prove his point, he said" U huh, I've seen it, he has it on his toes." I busted a gut all the way home and then some and couldn't wait to ask Brandon if he was aware he was growing fur on his toes. I would have posted a pic, but thought i'd spare yall that one, you can thank me latter. It's so funny to me what kids come up with, granted there is hair on most men's toes, but that a child would look at it like fur is so funny to me. Thank gosh it was on his toes, right?

FALL

2008-10-01T20:50:00.000-07:00

Well, we officially had the first day of fall, and then of course it heated up like crazy! The kids always get so excited when the Halloween stuff comes out. costumes, cookies, candy, spooky stuff, the whole bit. Taylor is my little cook so she immediately wanted to make cookies with the Halloween sprinkles she spotted at walmart.

Of course the most coveted part of the whole cookie process is the sprinkles, and boy do my kids know how to sprinkle, this is Taylor's best.

Yum! Conner doesn't get too into the eating part, but he likes to make em.And of course, Presley, our little crack up had us all entertained through the whole event. First she just poked at it.

I first gave her a beater with frosting so she would know what was coming, she's really funny about trying something new, especially when i keep saying " go on, taste it" she poked for a few minutes and thenyup, dove right in. don't know why she wouldn't pick it up, didn't want to get her hands dirty I guess. After she got a real taste of what I was pushing her to eat, she was quite surprised than I would give her such a delicatessen, and quite proud of her self too.Priceless.

And well, for my addition to the evening, I made dinner. and cleaned up the mess, and bathed the girl with all the frosting on her face. I was trying to think of something fallish to make, so I made haystacks, they are yummy!

And yes, I ate that whole thing. Thanks to aunt Mary I now have my first set of semi-china, so I won't have to sport my plastics as much. Well, i think I am about all falled out, and we still have the rest of the month and the next. Hopefully it cools down some so it really feels like fall, otherwise I think the pool needs to re-open.

My little food critique

2008-09-22T20:48:00.000-07:00

So, since Presley is STILL not walking she has to find something else to do with all that free time, and this is her latest. She absolutely loves to sit in the dishwasher. But it's funny cause she only sits in it when the dishes are DIRTY. Yes, I know this is gross, but she really can't help herself. If the dishes are clean, she simple walks away, but if the dishes are dirty, she climbs up on top, takes a seat, and starts taste testing. Yes, I am aware that this is disgusting, but she's so funny, if she gets something she doesn't like, she tosses it over the side to the floor and digs for a new one. luckily i run my dishwasher at least twice a day, so most of the stuff she tastes is from dinner. I constantly tell her no, take her off and try to distract her with a toy in the other room, but just like my sneaky marshmallow runaway, by the time I get to the table for dishes and back, she's already on top tasting. i have seriously made an extra attempt to really rinse everything off before it goes in, so time consuming, I think it just gives her more time to sit and taste.

I have also made an extra effort to help her learn how to walk hoping that new found ability will give her more places to roam, but it has been a no go, she's very defiant. i have never let my dogs lick the stuff in the dishwasher, natural thing for dogs to do, She even gets mad at the dog if he trys to join her, Territorial I guess.funny girl; but is my little girl any different? i guess I'll have to learn how to load super fast, or just leave the dishes all over the table and kitchen, that would work. oh the joy of being a child.

FINALLY

2008-09-17T17:31:00.000-07:00

So, the long wait is finally over, yeah for me. I have FINALLY found a mascara that I love. I posted a clip for this a while back asking for input, and i recieved some good tips, but unfortunatly no one won my contest. I found this mascara a few weeks ago and I'm hooked! The first couple of times I used it I wasn't so sure, but after a few times, It worked wonders! Yes wonders! The key is slow long strokes. Rimmel makes it,it's Glam'eyes, and I get Midnight black. I also love some of their eye shadow, but have not been able to get anymore, mostly due to walmarts stocking habits, or lack of stocking the same item habit. I love this new find of mine and until they create something even more spectacular, I'll be purchasing this in bulk, also due to walmarts not stocking the same item habit. Try it and love it. Because I love it, love it, love it.

WHAT IS THIS?!!

2008-09-12T12:19:00.000-07:00

So, I got up this morning and glided right into the usual routine, kids breakfast, school, gym, nap for baby and shower. I was skippping right through the whole get ready process and then as I proceeded to straighten my hair, something caught my eye.

Yes ladies, the scene you are seeing right now is true, I have grey hair! I know this picture is horrible, thanks to my bathroom lights, but none the less they are there, and I can see them! I frantically pulled up my hair on the other side, and to my astonishment there were more, lots of them! So, i said to myself " I can handle this" I mean for crying out loud I 'm a hair stylist, but despite the fact that I can easily fix this problem, I thought more to myself, how did this become a problem? I mean, I know i'm close to thirty, but is that really when it happens thirty? How young! But then I thought to myself, do I WANT to fix this problem, is it really a problem? I always see those older ladies with pure grey hair, and it looks so pritty to me so natural, but I definatly think it would look more unnatural on me. And then I think, can I possibly be in the hair industry grey? And how fast does this advance? Maybe I just have stress spots, that would be nice, except for the fact that those spots probably just doubled when I noticed them. So really, I love hair no matter what color it is. And I think the face is what makes hair beautiful. everyone is so unique, and whether it's black, brown, blonde, red or yes even grey, I think we are beautiful. So for now, my grey hair is still there, for how long, I don't know.

SEATTLE

2008-09-03T13:02:00.000-07:00

So, we took a weekend trip to seattle to check out some famulous sites. We decided to kick of our trip with a stop at Snoqualmie Falls ( who knows if i spelled that right) The falls were just beautiful. Conner is actually the one who convinced us to hike down to the bottom, whew! what a hike, carrying a baby! should have had a pack or something.The kids wanted to break the rules like so many other people were doing and climb the fence to go right down next to the water, but i figured "if" there happened to be a sudden change in the water rising, like stated on the warning posters everywhere not to climb the fence, we would be in trouble trying to get three small kids back over the fence, so i know, i know, had to hold back the wild side of me and stay put.I asked brandon if he would take a picture of me posing like ariel, on the little mermaid, ya know on the big rock? But he refused, so instead I snatched photos of the kids, neither of them wanted to play ariel though, sorry.i love the outdoors, so green, mostly clean, and smells fresh, especially by the water.oh gotta love it when kids smile for the camera, someone's always gotta be a goof. So we were all pritty tired from our hike down, we only got about an eighth of the way back up the hill and no one could make it! So, being the responsible parents we try to be, we left the kids at the bottom with grandma and mary, and brandon and I hiked the way up. Oh how I was wishing I would have opted for the irresponsibility and sat at the bottom with everyone else! It was a big, long hike back up. people were looking at me funny cause I was sweating sooo bad. I'm sure they experienced the same moisture when they hiked back up too. decieving little sign, all it stated was steep incline! guess we weren't thinking of the way back, oh well, rest assured we made it and fetched our family from the bottom. we made it to seattle that night and visited with family the rest of the evening.

Saturday was the perfect day in Seattle! we couldn't have picked a better day, it didn't even rain!!!!

We started off at fabulous pikes market, I just love walking around stuff like this, so entertaining, I'm a people watcher. Caught this pic of Conner smelling the flowers for sale, so sweet. I wish I could have bought some they were just beautiful!We rode the water taxi over to weast seattle and back, just like a ferry ride only, smaller boat, cheaper price, and shorter line, yeah for the bargain shopper! We walked all over, gosh I wonder how many calories I burned!Conner and Taylor goofing off for their picture with grandma, typical.Don't ask me why we didn't atleast turn presley around, poor thing stuck in a stroller, in my defense, she was carried more than she rode! After walking till we couldn't we stopped to eat at a fabulous resteraunt on the pier. Several people recommended it so we decided to endulge.

After the kids saw all the crabs inside in the display, they were begging for crab, so we got the famous crab pot, and yes they bring it in a pot and then dump it in the middle of your table!i ate a shrimp cocktail, yum and then i picked through the pot with the rest of them, exception to the boys, they ate burgers.taylor actually really liked the crab, I thought she was brave.i think maybe she liked wearing the big bib more, but atleast she ate right?Conner was so funny, he made me take a picture of this shrimps eyes before he hit it with the mallot. Funnier was that grandma didn't know they were eyes till after she ate and conner pointed it out on this last one, funny.

Well, after we were stuffed we cruised around some more and then rode the train to the space needle. We were going to ride up, but the tickets were 18 a person, and the line wound aroud for hours, so we just looked in the shops and enjoyed the weather. we did try to get a picture though, and i had to post it cause we were trying sooo hard to capture this and conner just had to pick his nose!

And poor taylor was just tired of pictures all together. Well the train broke down so we had to catch a city bus back to pikes market, conner thought the bus was the best of all, funny, who enjoys riding a stinky, packed city bus, evidently conner. After our 38 dollar parking garage bill, we decided to to call it a day, it was fun. Sunday it rained ALL day, we went to the locks and let the kids look at the boats, that was interesting, fun. then we cruised around looking at beautiful houses and such.
This was conner's favorite boat, it was a big one.The kids played in the water, and the rain. all in all it was a great trip and i'm glad we went. geeze, this post is longer than the last one, that's what happens when ya slack on posting!

Summer is over!

2008-08-27T20:26:00.000-07:00

Well, the times and seasons have done it again, my summer is officially over. Kids started school today and that basically wraps summer fun up for us. I have done a horrible job of posting all our fun trips and pics so I just want to recap a few.

First off APRICOTS!!! They are one of my favorite fruits, and i love to dry them! We picked they all and headed home to do some canning.Taylor was more than willing to help out. I washed and cut and she put all the apricot halves in a neat little row around the dryer. In no time we had a dryer full of apricots. We did dried apricots and apricot fruit leather this year, yummy!

Next off we have our trips to the pond. If any of you have been to "Grandpa Roylance pond" you know how fun it is. They have a large pond with a dock, paddle boats, canoe's, fishing boats, water slides, rope swings, volleyball, and a castle. It is loads of fun to go!

Taylor's cousins came up from Utah and the girls had so much fun going down the slide and playing in the water.This picture doesn't do conners face justice, but he was scared to death! This is a pritty big slide, and ontop of dad's lap they go fast! Conner cryed all the way down and then for ten minutes after. Oh well, he'll thank us when he's older, right? oh and in brandon's defense, this was one of our first trips out in the sun, he's much tanner now.

Next we took a trip down to Utah. We have a home there we needed to clean up after our renters, and we visited the Family. Conner and Taylor get so excited to spend time with their grandparents, and they love their aunts and uncles.

Presley finally met her cousin, whom is just eight days younger! Presley and Kylee had fun in the tub. Kylee is walking, presley is not, so they didn't really sit too much together, but they got a kick out of eachother every once in a while.

We took a trip up to bear lake for raspberry days on saturday. It has been a family tradition of mine for years, all my childhood we went up with our cousins for the weekend. We haven't been for several years, so it was nice to have that tradition this year. We walked around the booths for a while, but it was soooo hot and we had a slight forchance of rain so we quickly headed to the beach.

The kids had a lot of fun playing in the sand and water. We got pizza for dinner and followed it up with a famous rspberry shake. The kids were all so tired by the time we got home, perfect plan.

Well, i have more pics of our trip to Utah, and I am missing some, and i'm sure this post is getting rediculously long, so we'll save some for another day. Happy posting.

My Name

2008-08-19T13:42:00.000-07:00

Saw this on beka's blog and thought it was interesting. Most of it actually really fits, i am a curious one!

What Jenica Means

You are fair, honest, and logical. You are a natural leader, and people respect you.
You never give up, and you will succeed... even if it takes you a hundred tries.
You are rational enough to see every part of a problem. You are great at giving other people advice.

You are friendly, charming, and warm. You get along with almost everyone.
You work hard not to rock the boat. Your easy going attitude brings people together.
At times, you can be a little flaky and irresponsible. But for the important things, you pull it together.

You are very intuitive and wise. You understand the world better than most people.
You also have a very active imagination. You often get carried away with your thoughts.
You are prone to a little paranoia and jealousy. You sometimes go overboard in interpreting signals.

You tend to be pretty tightly wound. It's easy to get you excited... which can be a good or bad thing.
You have a lot of enthusiasm, but it fades rather quickly. You don't stick with any one thing for very long.
You have the drive to accomplish a lot in a short amount of time. Your biggest problem is making sure you finish the projects you start.

You are very open. You communicate well, and you connect with other people easily.
You are a naturally creative person. Ideas just flow from your mind.
A true chameleon, you are many things at different points in your life. You are very adaptable.

You are usually the best at everything ... you strive for perfection.
You are confident, authoritative, and aggressive.
You have the classic "Type A" personality.

What's" Your Name's Hidden Meaning?

2008-08-18T20:31:00.000-07:00

Well, seems like forever just went by when i realized i have not blogged for over a month!! yikes, sometimes time just gets away from me. not that anyone has been deeply saddened by my lack of postings, but i have intentions to not let that much time get away from me again. truthfully, i am so sick of my Internet connection, can we just say slow. it was one of those great deals where it's not dial-up, but it's cheaper than high speed, one of those in the middle things, yeah well, its just as slow as dial up! it takes forever just to load one picture! honestly when i post, it takes me at least an hour cause it's so slow. It's really been aggravating me lately hence my lack of motivation to post. I was going to post some new pictures of our trip, but something is wrong with the loader, so i guess they'll have to wait. We stayed out of town a little longer than we expected, we have a rental home that is now vacant and the yard was trashed, so we had to till it all up and re seed, arrrgh! people drive me nuts when they can't take care of things! it really bothers me cause they can just decide to not take care of anything, we're talking they didn't water the lawn for 3 years!!!!! all the trees, shrubs, flowers, grass, everything gone!! and the only thing I can do about it is hold their deposit, which i did, but that doesn't even come close to the cost of repairing everything, soooo frustrating. We've decided to put it on the market and hopefully sell it, but then that's frustrating too cause we can't get what it's worth price wise because of the condition it's in!! arrrgh! some people are definitely strange. I've kind of been down in the dumps lately, just seems like their are so many sad things happening around lately. My heart goes out to the milligan family for their dear sweet loss. Cynthia was such an inspiration to me. I just had a lovely conversation with her in a waiting room just prior to my vacation. It just caught me so off guard to hear of her passing, time is just so precious. i pray for their family. Whenever I hear of tragedies like this It just makes me so thankful to know that Families can be together Forever, and I'm so thankful I have faith in that. Well, hopefully I'll get some pics put up and be better at bloggin. till next time.....

surgery, perms, and a marshmallow theif!

2008-07-09T12:54:00.000-07:00

So I have been really not into blogging lately, partly because I have been so busy, summer does that to me, and partly because my face has been hurting ( yes, i know it kills most of you) so a few things have happened lately but i won't bore everyone, i'll try to keep it short and sweet.

first, the surgeries went well, with a minor exception to me aspirating some blood when i woke up, having to have an overhead page for all these doctors to come running, a few hours of some heavy duty breathing treatments, and more blood throwing up, other than that all went well. sorry no photos for me, but taylor captured one while waiting for her turn and she looks so sweet.

They made me soooo mad because they wouldn't give her any versed before she went in( the loopy juice so they don't have a hard time going back to the OR) because they said the procedure was too short and it would take her longer to wake up after; so of course she wouldn't go, so i walked her back as far as they would let me go, then i had to watch them rip my four year old from my clothing, kicking and screaming for mom to not let her go; the nurse that took her was getting slapped in the face pretty good and even got kicked a few times! Then I had to listen to her scream all the way back! And if that wasn't horrible enough, she remembers EVERYTHING!!! Down to them shoving a mask on her face on the table to make her go to sleep! I don't care how long or short a procedure is, no child should have to go through that. I have been through many surgeries with conner, and they ALWAYS sedate him before he goes back. To say the least I have yet to fill out my comment card.

On a lighter note, Taylor got a perm!

Her hair is sooo fine and it just won't hold curl, even the perm didn't take very well, oh well, still looks cute. she was a doll too, just sat there and handed me the rods while she colored, she was a good sport about all the rinsing too! yeah for taylor!

For our last event, over the last couple of weeks we have had a marshmallow thief! originally, i was blaming this all on taylor, conner doesn't eat mallows, she kept reassuring me it wasn't her, but she was the only culprit in mind, until one day, ah haw! i caught her, red handed, in the drawer, mallow stuffed in mouth!

At first I didn't believe my eyes, how on earth could this happen, but later that day i witnessed the whole job in action. our dear sweet presley gets the door opened, which isn't hard, digs for the mallows, they are in the back, she takes the clip off, yes i witnessed this, digs for a mallow, shoves it in her mouth and quickly crawls away, leaving the mess. I was mortified, and felt horrible for blaming it on taylor. i had no idea presley was capable of such a task, but after I witnessed this event of hers, which by the way has been going on for weeks, i will have to be more on the lookout of who i target the mess with. i guess I have to learn to not let that curly hair fool me!
So lessons learned: ALWAYS demand versed for surgery, don't trust the girl with the cute curly hair, and definitely buy smaller mallows!

DUTCH OVEN!

2008-06-25T21:44:00.000-07:00

So we took it upon ourselves to do a little dutch oven tonight, and it was yummy! We tried a breaded chicken recipe and threw in some carrots, for color.

It tasted pretty darn good. And of course we had to do a dessert!!! So we did an apple cobbler, I used my apple pie filling I canned last fall, it was delicious!

All in all dinner was great. You know it's summer time around here when your kids play in the corn and ya can't see them any longer!

We'll have to keep an extra tab on them this year, these fields go FOREVER!!! We wouldn't want them to end up on the other side! Presley had fun today going for some rides in Conners dump truck.

They went all the way around the yard, and then he took her in the garden so she could experience some rough terrain.

All the kids had such a busy day, they were all tuckered out and ready for bed right on time! yeah for me. Glad summer is FINALLY here.

LAKE LOUNGERS!

2008-06-19T21:01:00.000-07:00

Wednesday night we decided to head over to the lake for a quick dip. It was already getting late, so we didn't have much time to spend playing, but it was just enough to get the kids use to the water. Taylor jumped right in, no problem. she seems to be my bravest. Conner got in after some convincing and he even learned how to float!!!! I did not get a picture of this because I was in the lake floating with him, sorry.

The kids really enjoyed playing in the sand too. I like it when it's wet, but I can't stand dry sand on my feet!!!! Conner built a slide, presley slid down it. Presley did a really good job of getting into the water too, she didn't even cry. She hyperventilated abit but then she got use to the water and i had to keep chasing her out. She just kept crawling deeper and deeper, brave little thing!
All in all the kids had a great time and they all crashed as soon as we got into the car. Hope the weather stays warm so we can do it all again!

Another Birthday!

2008-06-13T20:59:00.000-07:00

Today our little Presley Bug turned 1!!!!

My how the time just seems to slip away. It feels like yesterday I was laying in agony wishing my belly would pop! Now we are off to walking and talking and all sorts of grown up things.

Presley sure enjoyed her cake! At first she was very polite and just used one finger to dip and then lick, but she soon got tired of that and dove right in! I think she liked the whip cream on top.

Happy Birthday Presley Bug! We love you!

200 THINGS

2008-06-12T13:32:00.000-07:00

Saw this on becca's blog, thought it was cute. 200 things you have done, or want to do in your lifetime.

200 Things
1. Lived in a foreign country
2. Slept under the stars
3. Watrched a hockey fight( when isn't there one, right?)
4. Changed a baby's diaper
5. Watched a falling star
6. Shared with the homeless
7. Swam in the ocean
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Watched an autopsy
10. Said "I love you" and meant it
11. Dissected a human brain
12. Dissected a human spinal cord ( a lot different than you would think)
13. Watched a tornado
14. watched the sun rise
15. spoke a different language
16. Gone to a huge sports game
17. tutored a special needs friend threw his high school, then watched him graduate from college
18. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
19. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
20. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Watched the sunset, every night, yes every night.
23. Lost someone so close to me it still hurts
24. Built a snow fort, and threw snow balls
25. Played five sports in one year
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Had my mouth washed out with soap
28. sewed my own pajamas!
29. Wore footed pajamas, i know.
30. Threw up after a roller coaster ride
31. Hit a home run
32. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking( glad i'm not the only one becca!)
33. Bought my first car when i was 16.
34. Have four different kinds of blood in me, thank you ancestors!
35. Felt very happy about your life, even for just a moment
36. Loved your job 90% of the time
37. Wrote in a journal
38. Walked on the warf
39. Gone rock climbing, love it!!!
40. Walk on the beach
41. Missed someone
42. Went to Greek Fest, and danced
43. bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Babysat, not my own kids, that wouldn't count
45. Bench-pressed your own weight
46. Milked a cow
47. Color coded my clothes
48. Been in love, still am
49. Sang karaoke, it was horrible, but fun
50. jumped on a bed
51. Gone snorkling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Done something you should regret, but don't
56. made my own bread, and ate it!
57. Started a business
58. taught someone how to read
59. Had stage fright, still do
60. Ate a bug, accidentally
61. Made cookies from scratch
62. Won first prize in a costume contest
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Graduated college
65. Spoken more than one language fluently
66. Broke up a fight
67. toilet papered a house
68. walked to school, 10 miles, up hill, and in the snow! ( lol dad )
69. Still cart around a childhood toy
70. Found out something significant that your ancestors did
71. Made a blanket, and liked it
72. Moved 10 times in 7 years
73. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
74. Helped a lost child
75. Had a job I didn't like
76. Won Little miss roy, twice
77. Cried over an animal
78. Ridden a motorcycle
79. Swam in a waterfall
80. Held someone while they cried
81. Helped someone move out
82. rode the rapids
83. Eaten sushi
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Made a mistake you still regret.
86. said I love you, I love you I love you.
87. Gotten someone fired for their actions
88. Filed a police report
89. Changed your name(Changing from my maiden name to my married name counts, right?)
90. Victim of Identity theft
91. Eaten fried pickles, they are suprisingly yummy!
92. got a strike while bowling! yeah.
93. Taught yourself an art from scratch
94. Went camping in the mountains
95. let someone bud infront of me at the checkout line
96. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
97. Been elected to public office
98. Cheered for the losing team, no ones losers in my book!
99. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
100. Wrote a poem and won an award
101. slept on a waterbead
102. Dyed your hair
103. Dated a DJ
104. Rocked a baby to sleep
105. play the guitar, sort of.
106. Cleaned up vomit that wasn't mine
107. Brought out the best in people, i try to
108. Told someone not to give up
109. Worn a mood ring
110. Ridden a horse
111. Carved an animal from a piece of wood or bar of soap
112. Cooked a dish where four people asked for the recipe, thanks to banana bars!
113. Buried a child, my brother
114. Gone to a Broadway (or equivalent to your country) play
115. sold homemade cookies from my driveway
116. Shot a basketball into a basket
117. Danced at a disco, oh yeah
118. Played in a band
119. eaten something horrible and said i loved it.
120. read a book
121. raised children, still doin it.
122. sat in the cockpit of a plane.
123. wore a t-slide, ya know the plastic slides you wear on the side of your shirt?
124. Eaten oysters and clams
125. Let a salesman talk you into something you didn’t need, more than once!
126. Ridden an elephant
127. Had a best friend necklace
128. Pieced a quilt
129. helped someone feel better about themselves
130. Acted in a play
131. Asked for a raise
132. Made a hole-in-one
133. Flew a kite
134. Gone roller skating
135. Went to alkatraze
136. Been late for an appointment
137. Invented something ( movie hanger elementary!)
138. Flown first class
139. Spent the night in a 5-star luxury suite, only because on my honeymoon i had to sleep, secretly, on the floor in a tent, set up secretly, in a campground 40 miles outside of my hotel, suppose to be hotel.
140. sent someone close away, not knowing if they would be back
141. played bunco with the ladies!
142. Sang a solo
143. Played games at a rest home for game night.
144. given a compliment
145. let my kids sleep in my bed
146. Been on a cruise ship
147. Had my picture taken and liked it, only once.
148. Been sea sick
149. Participated in a jumpathon ( jump rope)
150. Owned a dog, two actually
151. ran away, but came back before anyone knew I actually ran away.
152. played jax
153. Been a boss
154. called to jury duty, but didn't go
155. Lied about your weight, never!
156. Gone on a diet, what haven't we tried, right?
157. Love the smell of rain
158. Have my kids tell something about me I didn't want everyone to know
159. Carried your lunch in a lunchbox
160. Gotten food poisoning
161.Want to learn how to quilt
162. Trying to have more patience, constantly
163. Sat on a park bench and fed the ducks
164. Gone to the opera
165. Married someone that means the world to me
166. Worn hammer pants, remember those? vanilla ice, ya know?
167. Teased my hair, lots of teasing back then.
168. Want to serve a mission
169. Can hula
170. Love having my head scratched
171. Been stuck in an elevator, very traumatic, I was 3.
172. Had a revelatory dream
173. Thought you might crash in an airplane
174. Had a song dedicated to you on the radio
175. Saved someone’s life
176. Valued someone close to me
177. Love my friends
178. Laughed till your side hurt
179. Wanted to taken away a burden from someone else
180. Taken a photograph of something other than people that is worth framing
181. read Life Of PI
182. Sent a message in a bottle
183. Spent the night in a hotel
184. Been a cashier, resteraunt style!
185. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
186. Watched someone suffer and not been able to help much
187. Donated blood
188. Built a campfire
189. Kept a blog
190. Had hives
191. Rode spider style on the swings!
192. been in a car accident, not my fault.
193. been a waitress
194. Want to travel the world.
195. have a family
196. Know CPR
197. Ridden in a convertible
198. Found a long lost friend, still trying
199. reported a crime
200. love my family

SUMMER

2008-06-10T16:13:00.000-07:00

Where is summer, is it really far? summer, what's that? Ahh, this is what my kids are resorting too for play time, can someone please warm things up so we can all go outside? please.

Birthday Girl

2008-06-07T19:47:00.001-07:00

Another year has passed, and yet another child of mine turns yet another year older. Our little Tater Tot has turned 4!
Taylor had a lot of fun today. She had some friends over to play, and we made some princess wands out of pretzels and almond bark, and yes sprinkles!!

Kids are so resilient, and each year brings more surprises, and lots of laughter. We sure love our little tater tot, and we wish her a happy birthday!

LATEST CREATIONS

2008-06-03T11:45:00.001-07:00

So, I have been trying to get a little craftier, ya know do more, make more kinda stuff. I wanted to try something new, and as i was cleaning out presleys closet I found all these recieving blankets that i never used, as i threw them in the good will pile thinking " what a shame, they're so cute" I had a great idea! I cut them up and made a quilt! yeah for me, right. It was a little tougher than I had anticipated, just not quite as easy going as that nice thought, but i managed to get it done and it's not half bad. there are some imperfections, but it's usable and that's all that matters, right? just don't look too close.I have also had so much fun doing the birpclothes, and I FINALLY found some cute boy material at walmart, so I got some done. Now they're all packaged up waiting for a sweet little baby boy to spit up on them,( anneka). these are so soft too, using that warm and natural batting really makes a difference, I was pleased with them and my new blanket, now I just need some other great ideas! Happy crafting!

FARM DAY

2008-05-30T17:00:00.000-07:00

Today was FARM DAY! If it isn't enough that we already live on a farm, we dedicated a whole day to FARMS today. It was actually quite the production, and I was very impressed, along with all the other first graders in my group.

We started out with a VERY, VERY noisy bus ride up to the fair grounds. Conner was SOOO excited to ride the bus. He boarded up and got a seat by the window, his favorite spot, and off we went!

They had several stations we went to visit, they all talked about something different from the pud and electrical safety to pigs, petting zoo's , and flower transferring. Our first stop was the fire trucks. the fireman was there to let the kids jump all over them and he let Conner put on his hat!

Our second stop, and a few others as well, were tractors! Conner loves tractors. This one was a hay baler. They taught the kids what good hay looked like verses bad hay, and what they used it for. Very informative I thought. The wheel on this tractor was huge! Conner had to get his picture!

And yes, Conner had to ride it too! Look at that satisfaction written all over his face! We could have stopped there, and he would have been satisfied, but we still had to watch the pud demonstrate a squirrel getting zapped! No photos, sorry.

Potato sack races were among the other stations we visited. We sampled potato chips, learned how they make em' and then off in the sacks we went. It was fun to see all the kids trying to do this.

After a visit with Les Schwab about tires, learning about miniature ponies, feeding cows, coloring, learning about dogs, listening to a story, and learning about gas pipe lines, we made our final stop to transplant a plant. It was really fun and the kids liked this station a lot.

We had so much fun at farm day and after a bus ride back and lunch, the kids were off back to school! Thanks to everyone who helped with this event, it was great.

KIDS

2008-05-24T22:44:00.000-07:00

Today the kids played, and played, and played! they went over to grandmas and played all day in the dirt, yes the dirt. It is amazing how such a simple, dirty, brown ground cover can keep kids occupied for hours!, especially when you add water! I did not have my camera during this play time, and by the time I got ahold of it they were done, sorry next time.

The kids were so cute riding the four wheeler. Ava looks a little nervous, but those two really have a lot of fun!

We had a rather productive day today, busy. I got all my flowers planted, got the mulch layed down, finished the herb garden, hit a few garage sales,mowed the lawn( which takes me about 2 and a half hours, yes that long; not because I'm slow, it's a huge lawn!) cleaned the house, signed taylor up for preschool, watched a dog catch and kill a rock chuck( it's like a gofer, but bigger, kinda like my dog.) no i did not see this voluntarily; folded five baskets of laundry, and put them away- yeah for me, went to dinner and the Spanish branch festival, colored my hair, finished a craft, bathed the kids, and posted a blog!!!! whewwww! i should sleep well tonight. In fact poor little Presley was so tuckered out by the time we got home, she fell asleep on the floor!, too tired to even drink her milk, poor thing.

It feels so good to get things done around the house, getting ready to play all summer!

BIRTHDAY

2008-05-23T20:53:00.000-07:00

So, i woke up this morning and was pleasantly surprised that Brandon remembered my birthday! He even went as far as to give me my birthday gift BEFORE nine p.m. I had seen these cute aprons online and was soooo excited when I opened it up and found one!

Brandon decided to throw me a barbecue with my playgroup pals, it was great. We had so much good food, and Brandon even managed to escape a small grill fire, yeah for him! He cooked me his famous shish-kabobs, yummy. He has this secret sauce he bastes them in and it's too die for. we also did grilled pineapple, congratulations korbi for tasting it, I'm so proud of you! we had some really yummy salads also. Katie was great and made my cake, which was a cheesecake, and it was DIVINE! I loved those little white chocolate chips, yum. Brandon also made homemade root beer, one of our summer favorites. After appetizers, food, and dessert, we managed to get ourselves to the couch for some pictures. might I say, we are a lovely bunch!

I really enjoyed my birthday, thanks to all who helped make it special. one year older, and wiser too? happy birthday to me!

FINALLY, HEAT!!!

2008-05-18T16:11:00.000-07:00

This picture is worth a thousand words to me. This is exactly how I feel all winter long, until spring!!! I love spring and summer and fall! i know we have to have the winter, it's just a part of the whole process, but i love when it gets warm! And it feels like it has taken FOREVER to warm up, and then WHAM! one day its 90 degrees, crazy!

Presley decided today that she likes watermelon, which is good cause we basically live off of that and sweet corn on the cob, all summer long! yummy!

Summer brings sports and this year, for the first year ever, we are PLAYIN! Yeah for Conner. We are doing tball this year and brandon is the coach, yeah for dad! Conner likes it so far, its fun to see all the kids running around trying to learn the name of the game. this year we are focusing on not throwing the bat, running to first base, not third, and throwing the ball to first base after someone retrieves it. we gotta lot to learn, but kids are resilliant and fun and they just like to play.

Even Taylor likes to play!

Most of all I love Summer for relaxin! It's probably cause we get so tired from the heat, but there's nothing i love more than sun, swimming, and barbeque!!!! Brandon makes a great barbeque, and we love to just sit outside and eat. our yard swing has become one of our most favorite hot spots during the summer. We love to just sit and talk. We have a great view out here and it's so peacful to just sit and watch the kids play. Last summer i used the swing mainly to lay on in agony wishing someone would push me off and pop my nine month huge belly, so hopefully this summer I can enjoy it more! Chasing the toddler right? Hope the summer lasts as long as it's taken to finally get here!

CALLING ALL FLOWER GIRLS!

2008-05-13T14:06:00.000-07:00

Ok there has to be somebody out there willing to help me in my time of desperation. As many of you know i'm in a rental home right now, so my alterations are limited on my part, and limited because i'm not the homeowner. it's so hard to invest time and money into something that you'll have to leave behind, but i like to make it comfortable for my taste as well, as much that's allowable, legally. so the yard is big and green, most of it, and there are some nice trees and shrubs surrounding the house, but no flowers!!! there is some ground cover that was suppose to come up, but has yet to make its debue, but nothing else. there are these two trouble spots I'd like to invest in, reasonably, and get something planted, but what? yes, that's where the girls come in. i need someone who is knowledgeable in what to put next to what, and what will last, and what will look good. i tend to stick with hostas and pots, but i really wanna get something different in. Anyone who is willing to go to the store with me and help me pick stuff out, and then tell me where to plant it would be such a big help. I would be so happy to just show up with the cash and maybe buy a few drinks or something. I know this is a lot to ask, but I'm just not a flower planter, i love flowers, I just don't know what to put where. That is why I'm taking the initiative to delegate this great task to someone who can do it better than i. So, if you feel sorry for my sappy green yard, next to my green house, let me know if ya wanna help! happy planting!

PRITTY IN PINK?

2008-04-29T21:15:00.000-07:00

So, just when you think you've instilled all the precious values in your children, WHAM! you capture a photo like this. Brandon was begging me not to, as he was demanding conner de suit from the fairy costume, but really i couldn't help myself. I should have known he was up to something, taylor had hannah over to play and they were being so cute, playing in the princess tent in their gowns. Conner wanted someone to play with to, so I assured him it was o.k. to go play with the girls, painless really right? In my defense, i didn't know he would take me literally! I tried to explain to him he was suppose to be the fiery dragon that locked the princess in the tower, but he said that was too scary, little did he know the tutu he was sporting was just as scary. His little escapade ended shorty after his father saw him, but i got some photos just for kicks!

Just a shout out to all my friends, i want you all to know how grateful i am to have you. I have had an experiance of a lifetime here in moses, with so many people i feel so close to. i love all of you and i look forward to many years of friendship. it truly does make life complete to have friends. my favorite quote on friends "truly great friends are hard to find, difficult to leave, and impossible to forget." so many good memories i'll always have. and hopefully yall will have some of me! some of you are probably scarred for life with my little secrets, but atleast we laugh, right. to the grave ladies!

ITS WHAT'S FOR DINNER

2008-04-26T11:49:00.000-07:00

SO LATELY I'VE BEEN REALLY SICK OF WHAT I'VE BEEN EATING LATELY, I'M IN DIRE NEED OF NEW RECIPES! I HAVEN'T FIGURED OUT HOW TO DO A RECIPE BLOG, BUT SOMETIME SOON I'LL GET IT DONE. I FOUND THIS RECIPE ON THE BAG OF BISCUITS I BOUGHT, WELL BRANDON BOUGHT. I USUALLY MAKE MY OWN, BUT I'VE BEEN LAZY LATELY, SO HE BOUGHT SOME, SHAME ON ME. ANYWAY, THIS RECIPE WAS SOOOO EASY, AND SUPER FAST. I WAS DEFINATLY IMPRESSED. IT WAS PRITTY GOOD TASTIN TOO. SO FOR ALL YOU QUICK COOKERS, OR A NIGHT WHEN YOU GOTTA GET SOMETHIN ON FAST, TRY THIS!

QUICK CHICKEN AND DUMPLINGS

2 CANS PROGRESSO RICH AND HEARTY CHICKEN POT PIE SOUP
1 CAN PILLSBURRY REFRIGERATED BUTTERMILK BISCUITS

CHOPPED PARSLE, IF DESIRED

1. IN 10-INCH SKILLET, HEAT SOUP OVER MEDIUM HEAT, STIRRING OCCASIONALY, UNTIL BUBBLY.

2. SEPERATED DOUGH INTO 10 BISCUITS; CUT EACH INTO QUARTERS. PLACE BISCUIT QUARTERS ON TOP OF HOT SOUP. SIMMER UNCOVERED 10 MINUTES.

3. COVER; SIMMER AN ADDITIONAL 8 TO 10 MINUTES OR UNTIL BISCUITS ARE NO LONGER DOUGHY.
SPRINKLE WITH PARSLEY

I MADE THE MISTAKE OF OVERCOOKING MINE, THE BISCUITS DON'T GET BROWN, AND THEY ARE REALLY SOFT WHEN YOU POKE THEM WITH A FORK, SO TASTE ONE TO TELL IF THEY ARE DONE, OTHERWISE THE SOUP STICKS TO THE BOTTOM OF THE PAN AND BURNS. IT WAS STILL YUMMY THOUGH!

KEEPING IT TOGETHER

2008-04-16T12:32:00.000-07:00

I recieved this cute little book as a gift a while back and right now i have really been using it. Sometimes i just feel like life is falling apart, and this book really had some nice pointers. Lately I feel like i'm going nuts! I was informed by what they call a specialist these days that i need some extensive surgery done on my nose to clear my nasal passages, fix a crooked septum, and dig out polyps, nice i know. before he actually commented on my nose, he asked me how i got the "horrible" scar on my lip. he then said" it's too bad it's so noticeable, lips are fragile" i didn't take that as a comment to the plastic surgeon who fixed it! Talk about a self confidence check! I opted not to schedule the surgery, but was told my sinus infections would never clear up and polyps can be cancerous, nice again. well, i have not scheduled the surgery, try to get by as long as i can and WHAM! I've got a fabulous sinus infection which has also managed to take my voice, going on a week now, still can't breath, still holding out though. Then, the other day i insisted Conner put on pink cowboy boots for school, and was very frustrated that he was arguing with me, we were going to be late! then i realized NO ONE should make their seven year old son wear PINK cowboy boots; we then retreived the brown ones. then last night i went down stairs and called after presley to follow me, it wasn't after she fell down the first step( thank heaven it was a small one) that i realized she was ten months not 4! i erupted into tears, and after i made sure she was o.k. i thought maybe a fun bath would make it better, but after 15 minutes in the tub i noticed i put her in with her socks on! today i woke up to ankle deep water in my basement and I gave my daughter a cookie for breakfast, i'm not sure this was a good battle not to fight though, cause now she wants one for lunch too!, yeah my bad. I was in the dr. office this week and they had to call my name four times before i realized my last name was heslop, good thing they knew us otherwise they would have counted us as a no show! and no way was I going home after what I had to go through just to get there! so anyway, this book was talking about how NOT to do EVERYTHING, just concentrate on some things, and how not to feel guilty about it. it talks about knowing your limits. there are some things you just can't say no to( even though it would really cut down the stress if you could say no to laundry!) but each of us can probably find ways to trim our busy schedules. most of us have likely said yes to something we knew we didn't have time for, or sufficient energy or other resources equal to the task. the book then gives examples to creative excuses to help you say no when you need to. i thought these were great!

- I'm doing my annual dust ball inventory
- I'm counting and measuring all my gray hairs; this is going to take a while
- I'm training for an acronym marathon, lol
- I'm memorizing all the zip codes west of the mississippi
- I can't say yes to anything until I lose thirty pounds
- I'm organizing my paper clips
- I'm pasting S&H green stamps in my little books; it's something i've been meaning to do for such a long time
- I have to floss my dogs teeth
- I'm still savoring my jet lag
- The ragweed is too high this time of year
- I have to name my flowers
- I'm thinking about having grandchildren (I'm looking for a book with the title Grandchildren for Dummies)
- The man on TV told me to stay tuned
- I'm trying to see how long I can go without saying yes- thanks for helping
- I'm attending the grand opening of my neighbors garage door
- I'm sculpting a frog out of cottage cheese

The book states how some of this are really rediculous, ya think? but it says we need to try one or two just to get the feel of how effective they can be. it also gives a quote by Anne Morrow Lindberg, " My life cannot impliment in action the demands of all the people to whom my heart responds" It talks about taking time for you, which some of us still have not mastered to do much, even if it's just a few quiet moments. As i was reading this part and reflecting on my week, looks like i need more than a few moments, i've lost my head! It asks if youve had moments when you've hardly recognized yourslef, was that me? did i really do that? it talks a lot about stress and how to overcome it. it seems as though we have these lists of things to do, only they were suppose to be done yesterday, today, and tomorrow. the book refers to it as the List Collection ( doesn't it sound like a line of beautilful towels or something?) Mary Ellen Edmunds is the author, i like her, she's down to earth it seems. So back to cleanup in the basement, man I hate the smell of wet stuff! better tomorrows right?

CRAWLING, IS IT THAT EXCITING?

2008-04-14T20:54:00.000-07:00

SO, LIKE MANY OTHER MOMS OUT THERE, I WAS SOOOO READY FOR PRESLEY TO START CRAWLING. YA KNOW, IT JUST GETS TO THAT STAGE WHEN THEY ARE SQUIRMY WHEN YA HOLD THEM, BUT CAN'T BE CONTENT WHEN THEY ARE ON THE FLOOR. IT SEEMS LIKE I HAVE BEEN FETCHING TOYS FOR HER TO PLAY WITH FOR YEARS, AND MANY TIMES ONLY TO FETCH MORE BECAUSE SHE DOESN'T LIKE WHAT I BRING HER. I DON'T KNOW WHY I GET SO EXCITED FOR THEM TO CRAWL, BUT OBVIOUSLY ITS BECAUSE I DON'T REMEMBER HOW MISCHIEVOUS THEY ARE WHEN THEY DO!

MY BABY HAS ACTUALLY BEEN CRAWLING FOR ABOUT A MONTH NOW, SHE REALLY TOOK OFF FAST, JUST ONE DAY SHE DID IT, AND MAN THEY GET SO FAST! IT WAS NICE TO BEGIN WITH ( AHA, THAT'S WHY I GET EXCITED) BUT AS SOON AS SHE FIGURED OUT THAT SHE COULD REALLY GO PLACES, THE EXCITEMENT TURNED INTO MORE OF AN EXTRA TASK. PRESLEY'S FAVORITE HOT SPOT IS THE BATHROOM CUPBOARD, WHICH UNTIL SHE FOUND THE TAMPONS WAS GREAT, THERE ARE JUST BATH TOYS AND LOTIONS AND SUCH UNDER THERE, HARMLESS REALLY, I THOUGHT. HER SECOND HOT SPOT IS MY TREE, AND YES, SHE PULLS ALL THE FLUFFY STUFF OUT AND SPREADS IT ALL OVER THE FLOOR. I AM ONE OF THOSE FIRM BELIEVERS THAT YES, YOU HAVE TO PROTECT YOUR CHILDREN FROM THINGS THAT CAN HURT THEM, BUT I DON'T BELIEVE IN RE-DECORATING MY HOUSE! I LIKE MY THINGS AND TO BE HONEST NOTHING IN MY HOUSE WITHIN CHILD'S REACH WOULD BE UN REPLACEABLE. SO, I GUESS FOR NOW, SHE'LL HAVE TO PLAY WITH TAMPONS AND EAT DIRT OUT OF MY TREE. WHEN DO THEY WALK? I CANT WAIT.

MASCARA ANYONE?

2008-04-09T15:20:00.000-07:00

O.K. ALL YOU FAITHFUL MASCARA USERS, THIS POST IS DEFINITELY FOR YOU. I HAVE BEEN SEARCHING, AND SEARCHING, AND YES STILL SEARCHING FOR THE PERFECT MASCARA; ISN'T TWELVE YEARS LONG ENOUGH TO HAVE TO SEARCH?!!! ( my parents wouldn't let us wear makeup until we were 16) MOST WATERPROOFS TAKE YOUR EYELASHES OFF WHEN IT FINALLY COMES OFF, SO I TRY TO STICK WITH THE REGULAR KIND. I HAVE TRIED EVERYTHING THAT COMES OUT, BUT I AM KINDA CHEAP, SO I HAVEN'T TRIED THE COUNTER STUFF, DOES IT REALLY WORK THAT MUCH BETTER? THESE FEW ARE JUST MY LATEST PURCHASES, BUT AS MY HUSBAND CAN ATTEST, I HAVE HAD DRAWERS FULL OF HALF USED MASCARA. I DON'T REALLY KNOW WHY THEY STATE " NO CLUMPING FORMULA" ON THE BOTTLE CAUSE NO MATTER HOW HARD I TRY, THE CLUMPS ARE ALREADY THERE. AND DOES ANYONE ELSE HAVE A PROBLEM WITH ALL THE MASCARA COMING OUT OF THE TOP OF THE BOTTLE? OR AM I JUST SLOPPY? I CAN'T STAND IT WHEN IT STICKS TO YOUR LASHES AND MAKES IT LOOK LIKE YOU HAVE FOUR LASHES INSTEAD OF FOURTY! WHEN IT COMES TO MY LASHES, I HAVE MULTIPLE PROBLEMS; THEY'RE TOO LONG ( YOUR PROBABLY THINKING WHY IS THIS A PROBLEM) BUT SERIOUSLY THE MASCARA JUST GETS ALL OVER YOUR LID, AND WEARING GLASSES OF ANY SORT IS A TASK, SECOND, I HAVE THIN ONES SO I NATURALLY WANT TO MAKE THEM THICK, HENCE THE CLUMPING PROBLEM. IS THERE NOT A MASCARA THAT CAN FIX ALL THESE PROBLEMS IN A SINGLE TUBE? SO, TO ALL YOU HAPPY, FAITHFUL, LOVELY LASH, MASCARA USERS, A TIP WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED. I'M CONFIDENT ENOUGH TO SAY IF I TRY IT AND LOVE IT, YOUR NEXT TUBE IS ON ME! BUT BEWARE, I'VE TRIED MANY. MAYBE I SHOULD JUST WEAR FAKE LASHES?

SEVEN!

2008-04-02T18:28:00.001-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!

2008-04-02T16:21:00.000-07:00

We sure got a surprise 7 years ago when conner came into our family! WOW, did I say 7? It hardly feels like it has been that long, my how time gets away from you. We love our little conner, he has brought so much joy to our lives. We have learned so much from him, and I know his mission here on earth will teach us so much more. Conner has been such an inspiration to our family, and he has touched so many lives along the way. It is amazing to see him grow and overcome all that he has. I strongly believe he will have a great reward in heaven, he has been so strong, he's definatly our fighter! I call him my silent fighter, he has always been so happy despite his limitations, it is a joy to always see him smile. Conner definatly loves life, and we love him. happy birthday bubbles!!!!

THE BREAKDOWN

2008-03-18T19:18:00.000-07:00

HOW OLD IS BRANDON: 29, BUT 30 COMES THIS YEAR!

WHO EATS MORE: Brandon, but probably not by much, he's sooooo picky, you'd think you were cooking for a two year old( a picky one)

WHO SAID "I LOVE YOU" FIRST: I don't really remember, but i'm pritty sure it was Brandon, good thing it wasn't on our first date, he didn't say more than three words to me!

WHO IS TALLER: Brandon, by a whole head

WHO SINGS BETTER: I would have said me, because i never hear brandon sing, but last week we subbed the sunbeam class in primary, and of course we had to set a good example for the kiddos, and lo and behold he can sing!!! quite good too! now we'll just have to practice for sacrament!!!!

WHO DOES THE LAUNDRY: Well me, but i do have to be honest here, o.k. MOSTLY me. Brandon does switch the wash sometimes, and if i'm miles backed up he will fold something ( if that's what you call it when it just looks like the fabric has been bent) really I do appreciate it, but I have to take full responsibility beacause he makes me fold his underwear in this funny little roll with the pants inside, yes, i said a roll. It looks like a burrito when i get done!!! and yes, i have been rolling for seven, wait almost eight years!!! that gives me full credit right?

WHO DOES THE DISHES: It's a tie for dinner, but breakfast and lunch, all me!

WHO SLEEPS ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE BED: Brandon, but really we should switch cause it really makes it hard for me to protect us from intruders when I have to jump over him!!! sorry babe.

WHO PAYS THE BILLS: Mostly brandon, he does all the online bill pay, I do the take around and checks!

WHO MOWS THE LAWN: I mow the lawn, Brandon always gets slack from our friends when they see me out there mowing it, but to be honest, i like the excercise. if I don't want to do it, he will, but I mostly don't like to wait that long!

WHO COOKS DINNER: Brandon loves to do breakfast! yummy. I am very happy to say that he always is willing to jump in and help with dinner though. i either like to cook, or I don't and he is always willing to pick up my slack.

MORE STUBBORN: Me definatly me.

KISSED WHO FIRST: Brandon claims he was the one, but if you read the answer to the next question, I think you'd side with me.

WHO ASKED WHO OUT FIRST: Neither of us, Brandon had his little sister do it!!! nice, I know.

WHO PROPOSED: Brandon, three times, before I said yes. We were actually on my front porch arguing and he just thought that third time would be the charm, guess so.

WHO IS MORE SENSITIVE: Me, Brandon wanted to make sure I put me.

WHO HAS MORE FRIENDS: Me, i always feel like I need more friends though. Brandon is definately the entertainer though! I'll bring the friends, he'll keep um around!

WHO WEARS THE PANTS: Me, brandon doesn't like to wear them.

2008-03-17T21:43:00.000-07:00

Well, the competition is on for the funniest face! our litttle taylor is sooooo camera shy. She will not let anyone take her picture, atleast not without a fight, but when she saw the pictures of conner on the blog, she was sure she could pull funnier faces! this first one is her signature move, only she can do it in our family, and she is quite proud of it too! We discovered this talent of hers about a year ago. We were watching lelo and stitch and after stitch did this, she turned to us and said " look mom, I can do it just like stitch! " thank goodness she doesn't always have a snotty nose when she does it!!!!

A funny face, a monkey face, and an angry face sum it up for taylor, although i must say I have seen angrier faces from her, She was a good sport, and we got some much needed pictures! yeah for me. we also got our new windows today, they are so nice. it just makes everything look so neat and clean, i love them!