Crazy in Washington

Give-Away, not to be missed

2011-02-12T19:47:00.000-08:00

I'd like to tell you all to enter this fantastic give-away, but I really don't want to 'cause I want to win it.
Gorgeous, gorgeous. Check it out.

http://undermypolkadotumbrella.blogspot.com/2011/02/charm-cicles-giveaway.html

Happiness

2011-02-11T20:15:00.000-08:00

Willson cannot, really absolutely cannot, stand for anyone to be sad. The other day we were in the car and Savannah was upset with me. I was trying, unsuccessfully, to make her laugh. I asked for Willson's help. He first tried yelling "Savannah laugh!" When that didn't work I told him to do something silly. He gets this look on his face and all of the sudden he's saying "gan, gan, gan, gan, gan!" with his lips pulled back, his face scrunched and his teeth clanking with each word. I think it's pretty obvious what happened then. Now he walks around looking for people who look just the teeniest bit upset and trying out his magical cure.
There's been lots of laughs in our house lately.

ArT

2011-02-07T21:09:00.000-08:00

I'm loving the art class I'm taking this quarter. My teacher is hilarious. So, one day, within the first couple of weeks, he decided to take role. He walked up to the first person and "Who are you?" He makes his way around the room asking the same question. He gets to me and says my name then moves on to the girl sitting next to me. He says "Wait, let me guess." He looks at the role list, back and forth and comes up with her name. When he gets to the high maintenance girl in our class she smiles and bats her lashes at him and says her name. His response "WHO?" deflated she says her name again. So today in class he's asking for people to critique our work. He calls on the people he knows the name of, there's only about 3 of us, and then he's trying to call on someone else. So he sees another girl in the class and says to me "What's her name?" I tell him I don't know. He gives me a dirty look and says "Really? Come on, what's her name?" I again tell him I really don't know. So he then turns to her and asks her his name. She's across the room and soft spoken, so I didn't hear it so I asked him "What's her name?" He turns to me and says "I don't know". I swear I laugh so hard every class and have tons of stories to tell Andy when I get home every day.

the things he says...

2011-01-23T19:38:00.000-08:00

Today at church we were quietly sitting when a baby in our congregation squawked.
Willson sucked in a breath and said to me "A baby's crying."
I nodded my head in that mom way that means that's nice, please stop talking now.
He looked at me funny and said "But she's scaring the crap out of me."

uNdeRwEaR mOdeL

2011-01-10T18:27:00.000-08:00

When I was about 7 weeks pregnant with Willson my sister called to tell me she was 7 weeks pregnant. When I said, "Uh, me too." we laughed so hard. Our boys were born 4 days apart. It was funny to see the two of them together. They are built so differently. My nephew, Cole, was just this big baby, like my Mason. Willson on the other hand tended to be small. The joke was that Cole would be the football player and Willson would be the underwear model. Our dreams for our son have been fulfilled.
Without further ado, I'd like to present the underwear model, Willson, also known as Turd Boy...

We're 3 days in and so far so good. Hooray!

My Christmas Presents

2011-01-05T18:39:00.000-08:00

Mom sent us Visa gift cards this year. Andy used part of his to buy me bowls, so sweet!

Who Does That?

2011-01-04T14:56:00.000-08:00

There's a house in our neighborhood that's been for sale for a really long time. They're asking way too much for it. Imagine our surprise when we saw a Uhual truck there the other day. Andy and I were driving home from a date and we saw the house, so we started talking about it. As we drove past I noticed a dog in the front yard. I was a little worried. It's late and our new neighbors dog had escaped their yard. I continued to watch the dog and realized it wasn't real. Yep, our new neighbors put a dog statue in their front yard. (thankfully they don't live on our street). My question is this...
Who does that???

Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam

2011-01-02T18:37:00.000-08:00

Grandma Jean

2010-12-29T22:05:00.001-08:00

As most know I lost my Grandma earlier this month. It was semi-expected, but no matter how prepared we all thought we were, it couldn't compare to actually going through it. I took it really hard. I was in a fog for the two days before I left for CA. Luckily I was blessed with peace before the journey.
It was a wonderful opportunity for our family to be together though. My sister Mary & I were able to fly out for the funeral (thanks Dad!). We ended up flying out on my Birthday. We had a wonderful family dinner at Mel's (my FAVORITE burger joint). Can I tell you how wonderful it was to be together again. I can't remember the last time my family, just us kids (no spouses) and our parents went out together.
The next day we made the trip down to Escalon for the service. It was great. I got to sing "Nearer My God to Thee" with my sisters. We went out to lunch and laughed and shared memories of Grandma.
She is the coolest Grandma! Can I just say that. I mean look at the picture. This was taken at Mason's birthday party, I think his 3rd, 5 years ago. I know I have "better" pictures of her, but this one's my favorite. It just shows how cool she was.
So now I will share one of my favorite memories of my Grandma Jean...
Turn the volume up on my playlist. There's a reason Vanilla Ice is on my playlist.
The year is 1990. I'm 12, my sister Mary is 14. Our parents are out of town and Grandma's staying with us. It's a Wednesday night, so we're headed up to "Mormon Center" for mutual. We're in Grandma's hatchback Honda Civic with at least one, maybe two friends. Ice Ice Baby comes on the radio. Yes, she let us listen to whatever we wanted even though she only liked country. We tell Grandma to turn it up. She does. We tell her to turn it up again. She does. This goes on. Mormon Center is on a hill, a big one. So picture her little Civic, packed full of girls, rattling with the base from Ice Ice Baby, chugging up the hill. I wouldn't be surprised if we blew her speakers that night. If we did she wouldn't have cared. That's just the kind of Grandma she was. She loved her Kids, her Grand kids and Great Grand kids. We will all feel her loss till we are with her again.

biRthDaY pReSenTs

2010-12-29T21:56:00.001-08:00

(those aren't my legs, btw)

Hey Mom & Dad,

That's some of what I got with my birthday money you sent me.
I also got black tights with a subtle floral print and gray tights with a diamond print.
Bargain shopper! Cute huh? Thanks!!!

Love,
Meliss

Peanut Butter and Tabasco Sauce

2010-12-04T17:57:00.000-08:00

I'm in California right now. My Grandmother passed away, so I flew out for the funeral. I was able to go to the Sacramento Temple with my dad this morning. While in the temple one of the workers was so sweet to find my father in law, who was working there, so I could say hi. It was so nice to visit with my Dad and father in law. My father in law shared a memory with me that I had forgotten to get down here, so I thought now was a great time to share it.

While my in laws were in town for Mason's baptism, in September, Willson was being his usual naughty self. I was upstairs and heard an odd noise. I went down to investigate.

The smell hit first. I was so confused.

It was such an odd mixture of smells I couldn't tell what it was. Bet you can guess from the the title of this blog.

He had gotten into the peanut butter and the green Tabasco sauce.

Let me tell you from experience, that this is two smells you do not want mixing.

Seriously.

They should have a label on them, like the cleaners where if you mix the two it will produce toxic fumes.

The most amazing part in all this is where the mess was.

The floor.

The bottom cupboards.

The counter.

The upper cupboards.

And the ceiling.

Yep, that boy's talented.

chRisTmAs DecOraTioNs

2010-11-30T08:47:00.000-08:00

One of the table runners I made with leftover fabric and the cute Christmas countdown blocks I made.

Yes, Willson participated FULLY in the ornament hanging. It was too cute. I had to leave it.

The other table runner I made with leftover fabric.

Stockings I made this year, LOVE how they turned out.

Our Family Room tree.

Santa picture we found at a Garage Sale for $7.

sNow dAys

2010-11-29T14:39:00.000-08:00

We got out first snow last week. We were all so sick it was hard to take advantage of it, but Andy made an effort to get the kids out, at least for a little bit. I watched from inside. Here's our front window. The kids were throwing snow balls at me. Andy didn't want to be outdone, so he threw a shovelful at me. Thanks.

Andy's tribute to me. "I <3>

Willson's little footprints running out to the road, then back in when he got caught.

Christmas Tree Skirt

2010-11-16T22:00:00.000-08:00

I finished my tree skirt! I'm so excited to use it.
I'm feeling Christmasy!

My favorite part, fabric covered buttons!

My Baby

2010-11-13T22:03:00.000-08:00

My little man is 3! I can't believe my baby's growing up. He is the cutest little man ever and so much fun. His energy is never ending. Seriously. Nobody will make you laugh more. He wants to eat constantly. He moves so much, nothing sticks. Candy is a food group in Willson's world. He loves books! He loves animals. He loves to talk. He loves to be naughty, not out of curiosity, but for the shear pleasure of being naughty. He'll tell you he loves you and give you hugs and kisses, but he won't cuddle. That requires holding still. Love you Willsie.

Skype-ing with Grandpa and Grandpa Dude on his birthday.

wHatChA mAkiN?

2010-11-08T11:02:00.000-08:00

Can't wait to show ya!

Grateful

2010-11-07T21:21:00.000-08:00

We had an amazing lesson in Relief Society today about being Grateful. She invited us to make our lists of things we're grateful for. I'm going to list 25 things I'm grateful for (in no particular order). Here we go...

1. My Parents
2. My Husband
3. My Kids
4. My Home
5. My Heavenly Father
6. My Savior, Jesus Christ
7. Scriptures
8. My Sewing Machine
9. Good friends
10. PE, I know, I sound crazy here
11. Jewelry
12. Internet
13. Fires in my fireplace (thanks Andy)
14. Salt and Vinegar Chips
15. Books
16. Cuddles
17. Willson kisses
18. The Temple
19. My Siblings
20. Winco in Everett
21. Orange Converse
22. Going to School
23. My kids going to school
24. My cat
25. My bed

Now, I know some of these things are really shallow, but the point is I'm grateful. That's something that I need to remind myself of. I tend towards pessimism, so this is huge for me.

I'm taking it one step further. I've started a grateful blog. It will start with this list and every day I will add something new that I'm grateful for. Chances are there are going to be days where all it says is McDonalds or Bedtime, but again, the point is I'm grateful.

Here's a link...
www.iwillbegrateful.blogspot.com

Biceps

2010-11-07T00:04:00.000-07:00

That's right folks, Biceps, and I have them.
PE is awesome.

Laney Gaga...

2010-10-26T12:12:00.000-07:00

Night

2010-10-17T18:05:00.000-07:00

The other night I had a rough night. All of you mothers out there know what I'm talking about. I went to bed about 10:30, falling asleep VERY quickly. My body's really adjusting to this early school thing. At 2:30 I was woken up by Savannah. She was coughing a ton. We got her some medicine and she went right back to sleep. Not so for me. After a half hour in bed with sleep nowhere near my mind I headed downstairs to read. 3:30 I would have been awakened by Lane, but I was still up from the first time. She'd had a bad dream. I sent her upstairs to my bed and told her I'd join her shortly, which I did. At 4:30 I woke up when Andy woke up with a headache and headed downstairs. 5:30 was Willson, who had lost his pacifier. 6:30 was Sid, our cat, who had to go outside. 7:30 was Mason taking a shower. Now, seeing all of this you would think I was complaining. I'm not. I'm putting things in perspective. Given all this, I wouldn't trade a single one of them, yes even the cat. I love my family. They give me peace. They give me love.

(my) first week of school

2010-09-27T13:57:00.000-07:00

I did it.

I went back to college.
I'm taking English, Art History and PE.
Go ahead, laugh at the PE.
Everyone has.
Oh yeah, it starts at 6:30 am.
Go ahead, laugh again.
So, Melissa, how did your first week of school go?
Well, lets see...
Monday. Really tired.
Really Nervous.
Really Excited.
Tuesday. Really tired.
Excited.
Wednesday. Could I be anymore tired.
Good thing it's my Friday (for this first week, anyway)
I have so much freaking homework.
When you have to read, because someone tells you to, yeah not so fun.
Good thing I have the next four days off.
Online courses might be quite a bit harder then I originally anticipated.
At least I only have one.
Still excited!
Thursday. 4 am.
Oh, crap, I have the stomach flu.
Thank you, thank you, thank you Heavenly Father for keeping me well long enough for my classes to end for the week.
8 am. Savannah "I think I'm gonna puke!"
Okay, the kids were sick. It lasts 12 hours. I'll be fine by 4 pm.
Fevered haze, that I later find out is called Thursday.
Friday. Okay, I'm gonna be better today.
I make it downstairs, that's something at least.
Fever returns Friday night.
Saturday. I've got to be better today!
Still feel like crap.
Sitting at the computer trying to write an essay, that's due by Sunday, on reading that I haven't completed because my brain is so freaking foggy.
Crying.
Mind clears enough to get it done.
(the paper, not the reading)
Go to the Relief Society Broadcast.
Can't make it through the whole thing.
Too tired.
Wake up Sunday morning.
Wonder if I actually slept the night before because it sure doesn't feel like it.
Trying to get ready for church meeting.
Just can't do it.
Attend church.
Start feeling better.
Eat a really yummy dinner.
Feeling a lot better.
Get ready for bed and remember.
I have to go back to school again.

diapers

2010-09-09T08:40:00.000-07:00

I forgot to put a footnote on the diaper post...

When I first saw the commercial for these diapers, I laughed, hard.

(The commercial is hysterical...check out youtube if you haven't seen it)

Then I said that was the stupidest thing I ever saw and I questioned who would buy something so ridiculous.

Then I thought about it.

I thought about how Willson never wears clothes.

His choice, not mine.

I dress and redress him 5 times a day.

Well, if he had these he might pass for wearing pants.

Not really, but when he pulls his clothes off at home I won't feel the need to immediately redress him.

So, I looked for the ridiculous diapers.

I found them at Walmart.

$38 for 60.

WHAT???

I can get 82, regular ones, for $19

There went my giggles of watching Willson wear the jean diapers.

Then while laughing about it with my friend she told me I could get them on Amazon.com.

(thanks Amanda)

$19 for 60.

I ordered immediately.

I added a book, so I could get the free shipping,

and ended up saving money.

The book was less than the shipping cost.

Love them. I want to buy more.

1st Day of School 2010

2010-09-08T17:50:00.000-07:00

5th Grade...Seriously!

3rd Grade

Kindergarten!!

"take a picture of my foot!"

Special Day

2010-09-04T22:41:00.000-07:00

To Our Mason...

Mason, we couldn't be more proud of you. The step you took today, being baptized and officially becoming a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I wish I had a picture of your face as you came out of the water. It made me smile and cry a little at the same time. I've already noticed a change in you since you received the gift of the Holy Ghost. Listen to his promptings. You will be blessed. So many people, who love you, were with you today and celebrated with us. We had a fun time, huh? Tonight, after you went to bed, I noticed your door shut and your light on. I was gonna get mad at you. I opened your door and you were laying in bed reading your scriptures. Sigh. You're amazing Mason. I told you to turn off your light when you were done. Always remember this day. This love. This strength. This peace. Love, love you Mason!

i poo in blue

2010-09-03T09:05:00.000-07:00

when i go number 2 i look like number 1

for baby Ruby...

2010-08-24T09:50:00.001-07:00

Windows

2010-08-23T15:41:00.000-07:00

In our home, with the nice weather comes open windows. In house and in the car. I'm a huge fresh air gal. The other day we were driving down the road, with all the windows all the way down, the only way to drive in my opinion. Delaney calls, from the far backseat, "can you roll up the windows, my hair's in my face." I roll up the back ones and continue to enjoy the air from the front windows. After making a stop, we again get in the car and I automatically roll all the windows all the way down. We're driving along and again I hear Delaney from the backseat, this time a little irritated. "Ma-awm, I'm having issues with my hair again."

Lovin' Bows

2010-08-13T12:59:00.000-07:00

I haven't been making hair bows lately. I've been too busy doing other things. That and I have no one to make them for. We got an invite for a little neighbor girl's birthday, so I went to work. These were all new styles for me.

Tuxedo Bowsdouble layer lace bows

My favorite ones.

I might have to make a flower one just for me.

Fresh from our Garden

2010-08-05T19:34:00.000-07:00

This is the first time we've ever had a garden and I am so excited! I got 2 more squash today and 1 more zucchini. We're still waiting on the tomatoes and the spaghetti squash, but they look like they're doing well. We're already planning what and how we're planting next year.

Vinyl, for real this time

2010-08-04T12:55:00.000-07:00

2010-08-03T22:29:00.000-07:00

I really did come home with something. My friend is not a jerk. Blogger won't load my pictures. I'll post them as soon as I can. You're gonna love it!

Vinyl

2010-08-03T19:28:00.000-07:00

I was at my friend's house today and we played with vinyl.

Here's what I came home with...

Funny Faces

2010-07-26T11:42:00.000-07:00

Here's our best funny faces.

(Some are quite scary...cough, mine, cough)

Vote for your favorite....

The prize for our winner...

10 peanut mnms

(nmns if Willson wins)

Swim Lessons

2010-07-26T11:38:00.001-07:00

The kids had swim lessons at the local Y with some good friends.

They loved it!

This is their last day with the certificates.

Idylwood Park

2010-07-16T08:53:00.000-07:00

We took the kids to a lake with some good friends for the beach and a picnic. They loved it! It was so hot I was wishing I would have worn my suit, even though I'm not a fan of "dirty water"

Wall Art

2010-07-16T08:44:00.000-07:00

I made this for our family room.

It measures approximately 5' x 3'
Crazy in love with it!

I love Albertsons

2010-07-16T08:39:00.000-07:00

The other day I was Albertsons buying Dayquil for Andy.
I got carded.
I wanted to hug her and tell her she just made my day.
I refrained.
Best day ever.

4th of July in the Northwest

2010-07-06T14:56:00.001-07:00

Yep, it was cold and late. This picture was taken at about 9:00 and it was still light out. Gotta love it!

Hey Steve

2010-06-29T08:56:00.000-07:00

This weekend the kids were outside playing in the backyard. They kept yelling "Hey Steve" so I went out to see what they were doing. Turns out they were playing a game, in which they named Willson Steve. They'd say "drum roll Steve" and he'd pound the table. They of course laughed at him, so anytime anyone said "hey, Steve", he'd answer. It's the funniest thing to see. Willson's been "Hey Steve" ever since.

Purses

2010-06-28T09:00:00.000-07:00

My friend ran across a pattern for a really cute purse online. I saw hers and fell in love. Of course, I decided I wanted to make one for myself too. Imagine my surprise when she made one for me as a thank you for watching her kids. I was so excited! I'd seen on the site that they also enlarged the pattern. (130%) So I went ahead and tried that and added an over the shoulder long strap to mine. Using scraps I already had. No money spent at all.

*Free project, my favorite kind
Then, I've been wanting a new big ole bag for church. So, I found this fabric and absolutely fell in love with it. This bag cost $4. I used scraps for the topper and liner fabric. My new favorite bag! So in love!

Just to give you some perspective on the the size of this bag, here's the pattern for the liner fabric sitting on my sewing desk. I enlarged it by 200%

Here's a link to the pattern. I don't know how to do the fancy click here thing.

www.made-by-rae.com/2009/02/free-buttercup-bag-sewing-pattern.html

Graduation

2010-06-27T20:46:00.000-07:00

I'm beyond late in posting this.

Delaney's adorable graduation ceremony.

They played graduation music and had all the kids come out and line up.Then they called them up to the podium and said what they wanted to be when they grow up, Doctor, and what school they are going to too.
Willson saw picture taking and had to get in on the action

Congratulations Lane!

another reader

2010-06-24T17:17:00.000-07:00

Delaney just finished preschool, before entering kindergarten. On her final review her teacher said she was ready for "Bob" books. I didn't know what that was. I figured it was the super easy see spot run type. I was so excited to see a magazine box labeled "Bob" books at the Library. I took Delaney today to pick some out. She came home with 11 books. She told me she was going to read them. I came to check on her as soon as I got the car unloaded and asked her how she was doing. She pointed to 2 words she didn't know. "the" I told her what it was she says "oh" then proceeds to read the page to me. She's already read them all, with no help. So excited!

bOobS

2010-06-22T22:16:00.000-07:00

From the title of this post, you can tell what kind of man my Willson is.

He loves to compliment me.

While patting me in our family room...

"your boobs are so handsome."

I thank him, remove his hands and remind him that we don't touch or talk about boobs.

While standing in line at Costco...

"i like your boobs."

Me trying to whisper that we don't talk about boobs while trying to keep them out of his reach, not succeeding and through clenched teeth telling to keep his hands off my boobs.

Every morning I'm filled with compliments. He likes my hair, my shirt, my earrings and always a sly glance at my boobs. When he's feeling brave he compliments those too. I'm afraid I may have an Eddie Haskell on my hands.

restaurant.com

2010-06-10T09:54:00.000-07:00

Night before last we had a Relief Society activity where we talked about all different ways to save money and be prepared. Everything from Emergency preparedness, home decorating on a budget, clothes shopping and entertainment. One thing mentioned was a website. http://www.restaurant.com/

I was intrigued by what they said. So, I checked out the website this morning. Basically you purchase gift cards, for particular restaurants, at a discounted rate. There's a whole lot of restaurants that participate in this website. They have a diner of the month club membership. You sign up for this and every month you get a $25 gift card to a restaurant. You can choose a 3, 6 or 12 month membership. For a 12 month membership it's $120, which I thought was a great deal, but right now they're running a promotion. You choose your membership, add it to your cart and enter the promo code "save". What you end up with is a 12 month membership for $24. That's right, $24, for 12, $25 gift cards!

Wow!!

As if that's not good enough, they sent me a $50 credit, which I then used to purchase 2 more $25 gift cards, for free! I did it this morning and they're sitting on my desk right now, ready to use. Then I also got a gift card for $10 from an online shoe store. I'm so excited!

$25.78

2010-06-08T14:02:00.001-07:00

We have a wonderful bakery outlet here in town. I love shopping there. Everything is crazy cheap and the people that work there are so friendly. I always intend to take pictures of how much I can get for so little money, but I usually get too busy and get everything put away before I have a chance to get a picture. This time I'm sharing. Now this is about a month's worth of bread, more then a month on the rest of the items.

Yes, that's a giant Ikea bag and yes, it's full.There's all of it...
I've been going there for 2 years now and I just discovered they have spices too.

They're only $1 and they're the big jars too (5 oz.)

This is what I ended up with up...

5 loaves of fool the kids multi-grain bread
3 loaves of grown up bread
5 pkgs. hot dog buns
3 pkgs. bagels
3 pkgs. hamburger buns
(the regular sized ones, not the cheap tiny ones)
2 pkgs. hoagie rolls
1 pkg. english muffins
Bacon Bits
Lemon Pepper
Black Pepper
Nutmeg
Lemon Extract

5 of my items were absolutely free. You get free items based on how much you spin. You only have to spend $15.01 to get 4 free (with the prices, sometimes it's really hard to do it)
love, love, love this store

Clever Child

2010-06-03T18:39:00.001-07:00

Tonight we had spaghetti and meatballs for dinner. Unfortunately this is not a favorite of my kids. We made it through without the older kids putting up the normal fuss. I didn't worry about Willson. He's all about the pasta. He would happily eat pasta all day long. Imagine my surprise when Willson starts demanding more meatballs. I told him he needed to finish his pasta first and then I'd give him more. He threw the monster of all tantrums. I was in total shock. After about 10 minutes of screaming, begging and throwing himself on the floor Andy was able to talk him into eating some pasta. Andy had to feed him of course. So Willson's on Andy's lap happily eating pasta with the occasional bite of meatball. Willson's losing interest, so Andy starts making the pasta talk. He names them, they come to play in Willson mouth. One of them becomes the brother of the pasta Willson just ate. Apparently it's been too long since he's had a bite of meatball. When the pasta asks Willson to join his brother, Willson, pointing at his plate, says "No, go back to your family."

Cultural Hall

2010-05-21T09:27:00.000-07:00

This is another great place from my Nauvoo vacation.

This was originally a Mason Hall. The Saints used it for any large function or gathering. Meetings, Dances, etc.

This is the third floor of the building. This room was amazing to me. At one point this building was damaged and the roof line was lowered to just 2 stories.
The floor remained though. This floor.
This is the floor where Joseph Smith drew a map, in chalk, of the Saints journey to the West. I just stood, stared and felt.

My Nieces and Nephews

2010-05-18T12:46:00.001-07:00

It had been almost 2 years since I'd seen my sweet nieces and nephews. I had so much fun playing with them and getting to know them again.

Preston (the oldest) didn't want me to take a picture of him. I tried to respect boundaries but still be a fun Aunt. He went from a stinky little to boy to a hottie. I was shocked. His voice has changed and everything. Watch out for this kid.

Next, me and Paige. She is so much fun! So smart! Such high energy, she is up for anything. Totally reminds me of Savannah & Mason.
Then there's Emma and "Aunt Belissa" She's a little cuddle bug. She helped me to not miss my Delaney so much. They are so similar.

Next is Cole and "Isa" This kid cracks me up. He's 4 days older then Willson, but no where near as naughty. He'd say "Isa, Isa, Isa!" I'd say "What Cole?" He'd say "Hi" with the cutest smile.

And last but not least Graham. He almost made we want to have another baby. So sweet and tiny and cuddly.

Love these kids! Can't wait to see them again!

What my 5 year old thinks markers are for...

2010-05-17T08:39:00.000-07:00

I can't get over this one.

I laughed so hard when she showed me.

Delaney has always loved to color on herself. Don't know why. Guess that's just how she rolls.

I'm back from Nauvoo

2010-05-16T08:05:00.000-07:00

My Sister, Becky, and I flew out to visit our other Sister, Mary, in Nauvoo. I had an amazing time! I will post more about that later, but I wanted to get a few pictures up.

So, here our my faves...

Carthage JailThis is the site where the Prophet Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum Smith were martyred. The Spirit there was one of peace. It was truly amazing. I left knowing that those men had done the Lord's work and there was nothing to be sad about. There's a quote somewhere, I'll paraphrase...

"...they lived great, they died great..."

The Homestead

This is the home that Joseph Smith and his family lived in when they first came to Nauvoo. Only the brown log structure is original, the rest was added later. It was amazing walking into that original room. You could just feel it.

This was their home. Amazing.

Nauvoo LDS Temple
No words to describe. I could have spent days here. What's truly amazing is that this was rebuilt just as is it was 150 years ago. With the exception of the modern upgrades needed (bathrooms & elevators) it was made to the original specifications. I was amazed by the colors, beautiful greens and yellows and dark stained wood. Gorgeous windows & fixtures. I talked to my brother-in-law about it. Those were the original colors used in the Temple. It was truly incredible.

In honor of...

2010-04-29T09:15:00.000-07:00

I made a slight change to my playlist.

No, I'm not a supermodel

but my husband is.

Seriously, no joke.

Today he is working a modeling job.

Paid.

This one's for REI.

Hopefully the first of many.

I'll post pictures if I can.

Road Trippin'

2010-04-18T10:09:00.000-07:00

Let's just start off by saying, I don't do road trips. Of course, Andy loves them. The last time I was in the car for more then 4 hours was when I was pregnant with Savannah. Utah. I hated every second and by the time we got there Andy did too. Since then Andy's been on several, without me of course. You can imagine our trepidation on embarking on our CA trip. When Andy road trips he just drives. Me, I'm more of worry wort. Cops and such. So, how we worked it out is I pretended to not know how fast Andy was driving cause I just wanted out of that car. We were both much happier. There is something to be said for the state of oblivion. I think it can be healthy on certain occasions. Thankfully we made it all the way to CA with no issues police related or otherwise. I found I could do a 12 hour road trip without too much trouble. It probably helped that the kids slept through most of it, but I'm still gonna call it a victory. The drive home was not quite so daunting after our initial success. Again I went into my state of oblivion. Though oblivious, I was still on cop watch, so when I noticed headlights close behind us, seemingly out of nowhere it was hard not to panic just a little. Mind you, we weren't even out of CA at this point. I asked my sweet husband if the car behind us had come up quickly. He answered, like the thought never occurred to him, yeah. Um...might be a cop, ya think? When safe he moved out of the fast lane and after a few moments the cop passed us. We let out a huge sigh, he slowed down and we said a quick prayer of thanks. For the next few hours we were much for careful and mindful. When the night got later, weather better and feeling more relaxed Andy resumed road trip mode. As we were rounding a curve in the road I looked to the shoulder. COP, COP, COP. No time to slow down. We were caught. We watched as the headlights flipped on and he swung out onto the road. crap, crap, crap. We got pulled over. Consolation was that we were already a good ways through Oregon. He took all our information and went back to his cruiser. When he was on his way back Andy was convinced it was too fast for a ticket. I was not. Imagine my shock when he returned sans ticket book. He handed us back our information and told Andy he was letting him off with a verbal warning. Whoa. We were able to make it home with no further incident. So thankful.

Cali Highlights

2010-04-15T21:19:00.000-07:00

Dinner with the Mother & Sisters-in-Law

while the boys were at Priesthood session...Making Deviled Eggs with Grandpa...
Easter Egg Hunt...
Discovering you can ride a pink trike
when you're a 7 year old boy with a cast...

Easter Basket

even though you no longer believe...

Williams Family traditional Conference Breakfast...

And, of course...

Surprising your parents by showing up at their doorstep at 8 am, after driving all night (on a whim) when they weren't expecting you to be there till 5pm.

Surviving (technically 2) 12 hour road trips, when you DON'T do road trips.

Watching your kids play with cousins. Willson chasing the boys yelling "Cousins, come mere"

Talking personalities and communications.

Triple dating with our Good friends.

Listening to everyone saying "So, when are you moving back?"

Sometimes wishing we could.

Visiting our old ward.

Seeing how big every ones kids are now.

Seeing all our wonderful friends and family!

One week wasn't quite enough.

We're shooting for 2 next year.

Hot Diggity Dog

2010-04-14T10:01:00.000-07:00

My Dad is a hot dog lover.

Seriously.

It's kind of creepy.

He was so fortunate to get this at a white elephant party...

It's called a "Hot Diggity Dog"

You insert (2) hot dogs and (2) buns

Within a couple of minutes

(about as long as a toaster)

You have perfectly cooked hot dogs

and beautifully toasted buns...

I wanted to try it for the novelty of it.

It was delicious.

I now want my own "Hot Diggity Dog"

The proper way to eat Pringles...

2010-04-13T21:39:00.000-07:00

(according to Willson)

Birthday Present

2010-03-30T16:16:00.000-07:00

I made this cute little reversible apron

with matching Chef's hat

for Delaney's friend Ian.

It's the first time I made a Chef's hat.

It was so cute on,

I want to make more.

yep, he broke his leg...

2010-03-29T16:09:00.000-07:00

See that smile?

That's called medication.

And he just found out he won't be able to go to school.

He's been parked on my favorite chair since Friday.

Cast tomorrow.

Can't wait!

Babysitter

2010-03-25T19:57:00.000-07:00

Today we tried something new.

We had a parent teacher conference.

You can see the school from the back of our house.

So we let Savannah babysit.

She was excited.

Nervous.

Can I just say how awesome it was.

And scary.

And awesome.

Oh, to be a Tween

2010-03-21T22:07:00.000-07:00

Savannah and I were laying on her bed the other day talking about her new tween status. She was very excited. We talked about tween stuff... music, boys. She confessed her crush. She has a poster of a cute boy hung in her room (she has good taste, btw). She's listened to more Taylor Swift then I think I would ever want to listen to. We talked about how in a couple of years of years she won't like her parents as much, she'll think we aren't too smart. She just laughed and laughed while we talked about it. I thought she was laughing cause she knew it was true. She wasn't. She was laughing because she couldn't possibly think of any way that that could be true. I was humbled. I know the day will come, I'm just so grateful for my sweet daughter who can't possibly imagine a world where she doesn't absolutely and completely adore her parents just as much as they adore her.

Love you Nan. Happy Birthday.

what a 10 year old, girl, birthday party looks like....

2010-03-20T12:11:00.001-07:00

Moments

2010-03-19T14:50:00.000-07:00

As a description for my blog I have the quote...

"Be Happy for This Moment,

This Moment is Your Life."

I love this quote.

I was so happy when I found it.

I have to remind myself

(more often than I'd like)

that this is the life I've chosen

and I wouldn't trade it for anything.

I had a "Moment" the other night.

I had fallen into a fitful sleep around 11:30.

At 2 am I was woken up by a very angry 2 year old.

I went to check on him.

I'd never seen him like this.

There was pure anger poring from him,

in his cries, his body language, his scrunched up face.

I asked him what was wrong and he continued to rage.

I asked him if he was mad.

He answered in the affirmative.

I asked him what he needed.

He looked up at me and said

"I need you to hold me."

I quickly agreed.

He crawled into his bed,

grabbed his "softy"

handed it to me

and up went the arms.

I gently lifted my little ball of anger

and held him close.

His head immediately hit my shoulder

and we swayed.

I felt his little body relax and knew he was fine.

I kissed his cute little neck

and he looked up at me and said

"Thank you, Mommy."

I've had many a 2 am wake up

usually with a very unhappy me as a result.

This "Moment" was beautiful.

A little boy finding love and comfort in his Mommy's arms.

Scriptures, according to Willson

2010-03-17T19:40:00.000-07:00

Tonight we were reading scriptures with the kids, the illustrated kind. Mason was reading, but Willson seemed really interested. I thought, hey, maybe he's ready to start "reading" them too. He was very excited for a chance to read them. So, I would read off the words and he'd repeat them. We were reading about Adam and Eve leaving the Garden of Eden. Keep in mind that he was "reading" one page, which is only about 15 sentences total. So I said, waiting for him to repeat it, "Sometimes they were sad." Willson waits a minute, thinking, then says "Yeah. Sometimes they were sad." We got a little further on and apparently he didn't like what I told him to say because instead of repeating it he said "blah." I moved on laughing like crazy inside. I said the next little phrase and he again said "blah." By now, Andy's across the room, eyes watering from holding the laugh in and I'm trying not to shake Willson on my lap. I repeated what he was supposed to say and after one more "blah." he moved on. I'm thankful he gave up the blah's because one more and I don't think we would have made it through the rest of the page. Further on he had to say "...killed an animal." He again paused, thinking and said, voice squeaky and sounding choked up "killed. animal." He made it through his last two sentences without incident. Then we spent a good five minutes recounting his antics and laughing.

Help?

2010-03-09T11:32:00.000-08:00

The other night the Elders stopped by for a short visit. We visited a little, talked about what we've been up to, talked about how their work was going and they shared a sweet message with us. Can I just say how much we love the Elders. Elder Balle is just a funny nice kid and Elder Twelves has nearly no sense of humor, seriously. We all get a kick out of his total lack of humor, Elder Balle included. At the end of the visit Elder Balle asked us if there was anything they could do for us. After a few shrugs and nope, we're goods Andy said "You know I could really use a back scratch" I rolled my eyes smacked his arm and started laughing. Elder Twelves actually smiled and laughed a little. We were shocked. That just made us laugh harder. Elder Balle, very matter of fact, agreed to scratch Andy's back, with a laugh in his eyes. My husband never ceases to amaze me, for good or bad.

Something New

2010-03-08T08:13:00.000-08:00

I have been so in love with the flower hair bows!

They weren't popular when my girls were baby's.

I've been wanting to learn to make them.

This weekend I was at Walmart,

on a Saturday night,

buying diapers and wipes,

when I once again went down the fake flower aisle.

After so many times going down that aisle

I finally took the plunge.

I bought 3 flowers.

I know, only 3.

That's still super brave, though, right?

I'm just gonna call it super brave.

My blog, my rules.

I brought the flowers home,

figured out how to pull them apart,

decided what to put in the center,

(buttons)

then figured out how to attach them to the headband

and one barrette for Savannah.

(she wanted in on the action)

Remember those old commercials where the mom made Rice Crispy Treats?

She'd sprinkle flour and fish bowl water on her face

acting as though she spent hours and hours making them

and that it was so difficult and exhausting.

Picture me covered in ribbon and thread

with little pieces of fake flower hot glued to me,

a look of utter exhaustion on my face.

Now, here's the truth

It was pretty darn easy.

I figured it out all on my own.

And I ended up with a pink, an orange and 2 green flower bows.

(the green was full enough to make 2 out of, score)

Here's to super brave...

Don't hate me...

2010-02-17T19:47:00.000-08:00

So, Miley Cyrus. I know. Right.

In my defense....

I was already in love with the song

Then I found out SHE sang it

I tried so hard to hate it

I lost

I love it

Don't judge me

To My Big Sister

2010-02-16T21:11:00.001-08:00

Birthday wishes to my big sister Mary!My favorite memories of me & my sister...

Riding to seminary with Mary was ALWAYS an adventure!

Acting as my Escort my first time through the Temple.

After a long hard day of moving, Mary babysitting then bringing 10 month old Savannah home in a brand new outfit,

complete with a jean jacket.

Mary having to pretend to leave our house, including waving and saying bye to 18 month old Savannah, so we could put her to bed, waiting on our porch and quietly sneaking back in.

(Savannah wouldn't go to bed if she knew Aunt Mary was there)

Mary accidentally taking a picture of my front door, waiting for me to answer it, because she was so excited when I called and told her my water broke (with Mason) and she had to come to watch Savannah so we could go to the hospital

Watching Mary & her Family being sealed for Time and All Eternity in the Sacramento Temple.

Listening on the phone as Mary told me she was 7 weeks pregnant and being shocked as I told her I was 7 weeks pregnant too.

(Our boys Willson and Cole are 4 days apart)

Love you Mary.

I love you, baby

2010-02-05T12:01:00.000-08:00

Today Willson came running up to me, arms open wide.

I scooped him up , held him close and said "I love you, baby!"

To which he replied..."That's right be-be!"

Happy Happy Birthday

2010-02-04T18:06:00.000-08:00

Happy Happy Birthday to my Baby Sister!

(I totally stole this picture from Facebook)

My favorite memories of my sister and me...

Sending Becky upstairs to ask Dad for McDonalds for breakfast. (He never could say no to her)

Playing cards on my bed on Sundays

Her favorite comeback..."You're ugly"

Being in the Temple with her for the first time

Bringing me Carl's Jr. for dinner two nights in a row when Willson was hospitalized during our move to Washington.

Surprising me by flying to Washington, renting an Escalade (just cause it's my fav), taking me to the W hotel and having pedicures in the city.

Laughing, always laughing.

Love you Beck!

Cute Cute Girl

2010-01-22T17:30:00.000-08:00

Delaney had been begging for a haircut for a few days. When we'd ask her how short she wanted she kept pointing to about halfway up the back of her head. I told her that wasn't happening. Andy finally agreed to letting me cut it. I like short hair, he prefers long, typical guy. We ran upstairs as soon as he said yes. This is the result...Now if only I could talk him into letting me cut Willson's hair.

here mousie mousie

2010-01-21T13:29:00.000-08:00

The other day my friend wrote about having a mouse in her house.

It seems we have one too.

His name is Willson.

Razors

2010-01-13T07:42:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I was at the computer working when Willson brought me a pack of disposable razors, that hadn't made it upstairs yet, and in his best whiny voice said "I want Candy!" I took the package and told him that it wasn't candy, but razors. Then crying he said "I want razors!"

Blackmail

2010-01-07T10:44:00.000-08:00

Willson loves Delaney's hair bows. She has two of these, in barrette form, and Willson insisted on having one in his hair.

Delaney was happy to share.

Family Home Evening

2010-01-05T12:54:00.000-08:00

Last night we had some friends over for FHE,

which included a nice lesson followed by...

Guitar Hero

Notice the kids dancing in the background.

We don't know where Delaney gets her stance from.

Savannah's so good, she plays without looking.

Andy, not happy that I took a picture of him.

We had so much fun. It was our friends first time playing Guitar Hero and they loved it. We've already made plans for a Wii bowling tournament next week. Losers have to go get desert.

Thank You

2009-12-29T05:55:00.000-08:00

We had a super cool thing happen this year, so I wanted to share my tale. Andy & I had just put the kids to bed, the night before Christmas Eve, when our doorbell rang. I was expecting some friends to stop by to drop something off. So I happily went to answer the door. Upon opening the door I was surprised to see no one there. I got there pretty quick too, I was in the hallway, right by the door when the bell rang. I looked down and sitting on our mat was an envelope with our family name on it. Andy & I opened the envelope and were surprised to find a gift card and cash within. We smiled at each other. Thankful for whoever left this for us and for our blessings. About an hour later the doorbell rang again. I thought, ah, there they are. So I opened the door again and again found no one there. I looked down and this time there was a wrapped package on our mat. I yelled for Andy, completely in shock. There was a tag on the gift, that again had our family name. We brought the present inside. I asked Andy if we should wait or open it now. He told me to open it now. That was all I needed. I tore into the gift. As the first piece ripped off the box we were shocked to see the writing "Wii Sports" We looked at each other again mouths hanging open. Let me ask you this...Who gets doorbell ditched a gift card, cash and a Wii system? We went to bed that night, later then usual, feeling very thankful and very loved.

I have no clue if either of these people read my blog, but I had to do what I could to thank them so...Thank You.

Christmas Presents

2009-12-23T06:44:00.000-08:00

I was telling Andy that I can't wait for next Christmas because I'll finally be able to have Christmas presents under the tree. It's been a few years since we've been able to do that. The other day we received a package from Andy's parents with Christmas presents in it. I put the presents out as a trial. Besides a ripped off bow, he did pretty good. So a couple of days later, after the kids had gone to bed, I wrapped a few to put under the tree. I thought if I didn't call attention to it he wouldn't notice. I was totally wrong. Willson came downstairs, looked at the bottom of the tree and his eyes lit up. He whispered with awe and excitement "presents"

His little hands immediately began working. He was trying so hard not to touch them. He just kept getting more and more excited. His eyes glowing and locked on the gifts, his smile huge, and his hands moving faster and faster. Finally the excitement was too much and he looked at me and said "I smell it!" I burst out laughing and before I could do anything else he was on the floor smelling the presents and giggling. A little sniffing didn't hurt them a bit!

Thanks Aunt Becks!

2009-12-21T21:00:00.000-08:00

My sister, Becky, wanted to come out and buy some Christmas clothes for the kids. Because of work, she wasn't able to make it, so she sent some money, the weekend my parents were here, and my mom and I had a blast picking out stuff!

I cannot tell you how many pictures I had to take to get a halfway decent one. The funny thing is, it was Mason who messed up most of them.

I made some hair bows to go with their outfits.

We tried to get individual shots, and this is what we got from Willson. I still think it's adorable.

Yummy Dinner

2009-12-20T19:10:00.000-08:00

Last night we had an interesting dinner. Andy made some burgers and we had some fingerling potatoes, left over from the Relief Society Christmas dinner (it pays being on the committee). Willson upon investigating Savannah's dinner asked "Vanannah you have barbecute sauce?". This made me giggle. Then we, of course, had to talk Savannah into eating her potatoes. After she tried them she exclaimed "Fingertip potatoes are so yummy!"

Hum, barbecute sauce and fingertip potatoes...Yum!

A little bit wrong, but oh sooo right!

2009-12-18T18:42:00.000-08:00

The other day, some friends were telling me about this new donut shop in town. It sounded pretty hoity toity, but intriguing at the same time. I told Andy about it and he was intrigued too. Imagine my surprise when Andy showed up with donuts this afternoon. He presented me with my absolute favorite, pink frosting, which I haven't had since we left CA. Then he leaned over to show me what he was sampling. It looked like a maple bar, but there was something on it. I thought maybe some kind of nuts, so I asked him what it was. It was bacon. Yep, bacon on a maple bar. I gasped and ewwed. Then he reasoned with me. When I have bacon with breakfast, what do I do? Um, smother it in syrup. When we buy sausage, what kind do we buy? Um, maple and brown sugar. I still was not swayed. Finally out of sheer curiosity I relented to just trying a bite. Holy Crap. It was so good and so right. Seriously.

Try it. You'll love it!

Christmas Decorations

2009-12-17T16:17:00.000-08:00

My mom requested pictures of our Christmas Decorations...

What??

2009-12-14T07:22:00.000-08:00

Last night we were watching the movie "Evan Almighty" with the kids. Love that movie. At the end of the movie it shows a white dove so Andy asked the kids why that was there. Savannah immediately replied with the correct answer and Delaney agreed saying...

"Yeah, God is a Pigeon."

My goodness. I needed that laugh.

I got Tagged

2009-12-02T14:27:00.000-08:00

Look what happens when you play on the computer...

Five North American Cities I Would Seriously Consider Living:
1. Seattle WA
2. Folsom CA
3. Nauvoo IL
4. Cameron Park CA
5. Carmichael CA

Five Songs To Which I Know All The Words:
1. Paul Revere - Beastie Boys
2. With or Without You- U2
3. The Last of the Famous International Playboys - Morrisey
4. Better That We Break - Maroon 5
5. Somebody - Depeche Mode

Five Foods I'd Wish To Have In Unlimited Quantities On A Deserted Island:
1. Pizza
2. Pizza
3. Pizza
4. Pizza
5. Salt & Vinegar Chips

Five Chores I Should Be Doing Right Now Instead of Blogging:
1. Dishes
2. Laundry
3. Changing a diaper
4. Cleaning my room
5. Playing with my kids

Five Childhood Friends I Would Love To See Again:
1. Elisabeth Emerson
2. Anne LeBras
3. Laurie Simpson
4. ?
5. ?

Five Friends To Tag:
1. Sarah
2. Melissa
3. Jenn
4. Kristin
5. Debbie

Christmas Projects

2009-11-27T07:45:00.000-08:00

As most of you know, we are having a homemade Christmas this year. I have completed several of the projects. I didn't want to post them on this blog, since my Savannah reads it. So, I started a new blog, just for my homemade Christmas. If you would like to view my completed projects, there is a link right above our family picture. Enjoy! I know I am!

Baby Shower

2009-11-26T08:32:00.000-08:00

Last weekend I went to a Baby Shower for a good friend of mine.

Those of you who know me,

know I can't wrap a pretty present to save my life.

Seriously, I'm that bad.

So, shocker of all shockers

I managed to pull out a pretty package

I was so proud of myself that I had to post it

so I can go back and say

"Remember that one time I wrapped that pretty present?

That was awesome"

Then no one can dispute the validity of my claim.This is what was inside of the package....

My absolute favorite part!

Newborn sized tutu.

It was seriously too cute for words.

forgot to post this...

2009-11-19T07:04:00.000-08:00

Someone loves Elmo & Dancing

What a perfect gift

Thanks Grandma & Grandpa

(that's not sarcastic, btw)

Name Choc-o-late

2009-11-14T07:15:00.000-08:00

We've recently been teaching Willson that when someone says

"What's your name?" he answers "Willson"

He's been doing really well with it.

Usually you get a yelling and jumping "Willson!"

(Yeah he never stops moving)

The other day he was cranky

or just sick of me asking him what his name was.

At first he just ignored me

then I was more persistent.

Finally he looked at me

I said "What's your name?"

Willson replied "Choc-o-late"

I said "What?!" (laughing)

Smiling at me "Name choc-o-late"

Guess Who's 2

2009-11-13T14:17:00.000-08:00

Today is my sweet baby's birthday! I don't know where the time has gone.

My little man loves to move!

He doesn't stop, ever!

He loves his Mommy and Daddy,

Fanannah (Savannah), Mason & Delaney,

Elmo,

Choc-o-late,

and anything that requires him to move.

He won't pose for pictures for more than 2 seconds.

I have to beg for hugs and kisses,

but when he's in the mood to give them, watch out!

He loves all men.

When the Elders come over we can't keep him off them.

He loves to say his prayers.

He's getting so good at them.

He has the loudest "Amen" you'll ever hear.

After Delaney we thought we were done having kids

Then Heavenly Father whispered,

"one more boy"

Then He sent us Willson.

Love you Willson.

I made him Elmo cupcakes for his birthday

Night Owl

2009-11-12T09:43:00.000-08:00

Savannah loves to stay up late. That's how she rolls. So last night when I discovered her light on WAY past bed time I went to investigate. A few weeks ago she was having nightmares, so she slept with it on. I walked into her room and found her obviously faking sleep. She pretended to sleepily sit up. I decided to play along. I asked why her light was still on. She kind of shrugged. I asked her if she was having bad dreams. She said no. I asked her what she was doing. She sat there for a minute and then tentatively pointed at her nightstand. I scanned the night stand looking for books, stories she was writing and found none. The only thing there was her scriptures on top of a pile of friend magazines. I asked her again what she'd been doing. She again pointed at her nightstand, more confidently this time. So I asked her if she was reading her scriptures. She nodded and added that she was reading some stuff she got from Primary too. Before I could stop myself I blurted out "Really?" She quietly nodded again. How could I get mad at that? I calmly and quietly reminded her that we have bedtimes for a reason and that she needed to go to sleep. She quietly agreed and prepared to go to sleep. I turned off her light and walked out of her room feeling thankful for my sweet daughter.

I Like Pie

2009-11-09T09:58:00.001-08:00

Savannah and I like to play this game that originated from her friend Allie. Allie is a really funny kid. She came up with saying "I like pie" randomly. We've turned into a game where we take turns saying things we like, always starting with "I like..." The "i like's" involve everything from food, people, books, tv shows, movies, etc. We were playing it on the way to school this morning. The kids were naming all different flavors of pies that they liked. It was cute. Then all of the sudden Willson was yelling something. I listened real hard as he yelled "I like pie!"

My Baby

2009-11-07T08:05:00.000-08:00

We've had sickness in our home.

At first we feared the dreaded swine flu.

Thankfully we were wrong.

The 2 youngest members have been afflicted.

This has ended up in lots of crankiness,

especially from the youngest.

He has been following me around the house with

"hold you" and lots of screaming.

Also lots of "I need Chocolate"

In an effort to make him happy,

I showed him my blog.

He likes to look at the pictures.

He was pointing out who people were.

When it came to his pictures I said

"Who's that?"

To which he replied

"Willson going Church"

I love how he associates all his button up shirts with Church.

The other day I put one on him.

He said "I go Nursery. Playdough. Roll it, make it ball"

Then he proceeded to show me how to roll it.

So, in the midst of all the crying and snot

and constant demands for my attention

I am reminded how smart and fun my little man is.

I'm holding him while typing this

and he's turning my head to face him and saying

"I need choc-o-late"

How can I refuse!

Andicapped

2009-11-05T23:30:00.000-08:00

Well, he did it.

My sweet husband started his own blog.

(With a little help from me)

Here it is...

www.andicapped.blogspot.com

Halloween

2009-11-02T08:03:00.000-08:00

Here's a picture from Halloween. We had dinner at our friends house and then took the kids trick-or-treating.

A good time was had by all.

I have more pictures, on my phone, that I will post as soon as I figure out how to get them from the phone to the computer.

You might live in Washington...

2009-11-01T10:37:00.000-08:00

if it's raining

if it's 53 degrees out

if you decide to go to the Library

if you choose to wear

jeans

t-shirt

flip flops

if you have wet hair

if you aren't even a little cold

Then you just might live in Washington

I <3 Kids

2009-10-29T07:30:00.000-07:00

I should have posted this long ago, but life got in the way...

We had some friends over to play. The kids were in the backyard digging, of course. I was in the Kitchen baking. I heard them singing, through the open window, and smiled to myself.

Then I realized what they were singing and my heart smiled.

Listen closely...

*How Firm a Foundation (they've been learning it in Primary)

HaiR bOws, hAir BowS, haiR boWs

2009-10-27T15:04:00.000-07:00

I'm finally getting around to posting my "handmade" gifts

for 2 of the 3 who accepted my offer.

My friend taught me how to make hair bows

and I had SO much fun with it.

Sarah just had a baby girl and

Debbie is going to have one any day now,

so I went to work.

I didn't get a picture of the bows I sent Debbie,

but a lot of them were the same as Sarah's.

Watch out for all the pictures...

Goodbye, Get Out

2009-10-19T15:38:00.000-07:00

When I was a teenager my mom was dropping off one of our friends. As a joke she said "goodbye, get out". I've always thought this was hilarious. So, when I drive my kids to school, we do all the kissy faces, I love yous and then I say "goodbye, get out" and Savannah says "goodbye, stay in." Today when we got home we pulled into the garage and I said "goodbye, get out" Savannah paused, confused then smiled, then Willson said "goodbye, get out."

we were bored...

2009-10-15T16:56:00.001-07:00

Savannah

Mason
Delaney
Willson
He saw Laney doing it.
He couldn't hold still long enough.

I finally get to post this...

2009-10-13T19:00:00.000-07:00

I received confirmation from my sister that her girls received these, so I get to post it now. Fun Halloween bows, handmade by me. Love it!

Loser

2009-10-06T07:53:00.000-07:00

The other night we were laughing and joking at the dinner table. Delaney pulled this out...That just made me laugh harder.

Embarrassing

2009-10-05T10:58:00.001-07:00

Last night Andy I were visiting and laughing and for some reason he quoted something from one of the many dumb books that I've read, that he makes fun of me for reading. So I laughed at him and asked him if he'd read it. He admitted that he's read a little bit of it, just to check up on me. He further admitted that he does this occasionally with the books I read. I laughed so hard. I think he might secretly enjoy dumb teen romances. At this point though I don't know what is more embarrassing. Me for admitting that I've read it, or Andy for checking up on me. What man do you know can say he's read, part of it anyway, the following book...

Christmas

2009-10-04T15:00:00.000-07:00

So, I was recently called to the Activities Committee for our ward, along with my Enrichment Committee calling. I went to my first meeting last week. We were talking about assignments for our upcoming Halloween party. When asked what my talents were I told them that I'm really good at showing up. I can also follow directions really well. I'm not terribly good at coming up with party decorations, but I am really good at seeing someones vision through. That being said, I've been blog stalking a few places that have really good ideas for gifts. Christmas this year is going to be slim, so I decided I want to make our Christmas gifts. I'm super excited about it! I love to make things for those I love. I've seen lots of great ideas. Yeah, I'm going on blogs of people I've never met and using their great ideas. I'm struggling with what to make for Mason though. Girls are so much easier to make things for, so if anyone has any handmade boy ideas I would really appreciate it.