The New Adventures of Old Lisa

Bittersweet Binky

2012-01-27T07:47:00.000-08:00

I am not a fan of the binky. Colton never took one, so I'm new at all this, but I thought binkies were supposed to be a big relief to mothers! Kylie likes them but it's been nothing but a headache to me. She sleeps through the night in the sense that she doesn't need to eat, but she'll wake up an average of two times because she can't find her binky. And she takes awhile to get to sleep for naps because she plays around with her binky first before falling asleep and then either can't find it or can't figure out how to put it back in her mouth. When do babies finally get it and it becomes an aid for parents instead of a pain in the butt? I'm tempted just to take it away now and make her figure out how to sooth herself. Or am I close to a turning point where she'll be figuring it all out herself? I don't know what to do. But I do know that my next kid will not ever have one!!

New Years Resolutions 2012

2012-01-19T07:28:00.000-08:00

This is a little late getting out, mainly because I didn't even think about making NY resolutions until about half-way through January. We spent our New Years sick - I had strep throat and both kids had RSV. So goal setting was not at the forefront of our thoughts. Here are the goals that I've made for the year. I'm hoping that by writing them down on here I'll be better about completing them.

Spend 15 minutes every day working on the alphabet with Colton until he starts PreK in the fall. I bought this workbook and this one to help us both out.
Lose the remaining 5 pregnancy pounds I have plus 20 more pounds this year. I got a gym membership for Christmas and have been pretty good about going 3-4 times a week so far! Part of my motivation to go is that they have an awesome day care, so it's a kid-free hour for me. Pure bliss.
Run in a 10k. This one specifically.
Go to the temple once a month.
Read all the Newbery Medal books that I haven't already read. I'm starting with the first winner and working my way backwards to 2012. Here's a list of all the winners if you're interested!

Snow Fun

2012-01-14T15:52:00.000-08:00

We FINALLY got a snow storm (not that I was too upset about the warm winter we've had) and Colton has been outside playing in the snow every day since. His favorite activity is mowing the snow with his lawn mower and then shoveling the snow from the lawn onto the driveway. He's got the reverse idea about snow removal. He also insists on drinking hot chocolate immediately upon entering the house, no matter if he was outside for 2 minutes or 2 hours. Touching snow = hot chocolate. Our yard has an ideal sledding hill for toddlers. It's just steep and long enough to be fun but not steep for them to walk back up it carrying their own sled. This is great for me because then I can sit inside the warm house and just watch him through the window!


Awesome snow outfit - he dresses himself now.

Daddy pushing Colton down the hill on the side of the house.

We have three different types of sleds and this one is his favorite.

Shoveling the snow in the yard.

Joe was showing Colton the fine art of creating a snow ball. Then they threw them at me.

Kylie is 6 Months Old!

2012-01-10T11:21:00.000-08:00

First taste of rice cereal - not a huge fan yet.

My cute, cuddly, spunky little girl is already 6 months old! I've really enjoyed her time as a baby and she is very content with the chaos (a.k.a. Colton) around her and is always smiling. She's getting more mobile and I've forgotten how much babies can get into. And to add to all that, Colton loves giving her small things to play with. She can roll to any location she needs to get to and naturally has to put everything in her mouth. Colton and Kylie are becoming good friends and I really hope it stays that way. Every morning they lay together and watch a cartoon while I eat breakfast and it's so cute to watch them interact and accept each others annoyances. Kylie will be screeching and aimlessly hitting Colton and he won't be phased at all. Then 20 minutes later Colton is yelling "FIRE!" in Kylie's face, jumping over her repeatedly and pretending to spray water on her. And she isn't phased at all. Colton is very protective of her still and when his friends get near her he'll hurry and jump between them and say, "This is MY fireman baby! You can't touch her!" We all love her so much and are grateful that she's a part of our family.


Fireman Baby Kylie

Morning cartoon cuddle time

Christmas with the Cousins

2012-01-07T16:27:00.000-08:00

We were so blessed this Christmas to get to have all of Joe's family in town to celebrate together. Joe's siblings live in Austin, Atlanta, and DC, so it was quite the trek to get them all out. Colton was in absolute heaven having all his cousins here! The only unfortunate thing is that all the cousins at some point were sick with a cold, with Colton and Jack having it the worst. Some highlights of the trip for the cousins:

Going to the dino museum and Airborne (a trampoline place) twice each
Going to BYU campus and a BYU Basketball game together
Movie nights
Playing in Gma and Gpa's basement
Watching the girl cousins perform for us (sing songs)
Took family pictures
Eat at the Lion House and look at the lights at Temple Square
Get to hang out with a babysitter while the parents went to dinner and a movie
And play endless games with each other

These are the few pics I got of the trip:

Christmas 2011

2011-12-26T21:55:00.000-08:00

The fire truck Colton asked Santa for. He informed me that he didn't want the elves to make the truck, he just wanted Santa to go to Costco and buy it.

The second thing he asked Santa for, a garbage truck that picks the garbage up!

Christmas at my parents house on Christmas Eve

Kylie mainly just wanted to eat the wrapping paper and bows.

Holding her first doll.

This is what Santa brought Kylie!

Christmas Eve with Aunt Kiki and Papa B.

Cutest Santa Helper ever!

Where did the time go?

2011-12-22T18:31:00.000-08:00

I'm seriously in shock that it has been so stinkin' long since I've published a post! The main reason why is because we haven't had the internet hooked up in our home since we moved in (for a variety of reasons) but we finally had it installed and here I am! Here are some pics to update our lives:

Kylie at 3 months

Kylie at 4 months

Colton with one of his BFFs, Emma

Colton loves "holding" Kylie and does it every morning after her first bottle.

Visited the witches at Gardner Village

Halloween Kylie

Made some fun pumpkins (much easier than carving!)

Made some fun crafts (thank you Pinterest!)

Enjoyed the views off the back deck

Enjoyed the great weather outside

Visited Santas and Colton let him know that he wants the firetruck from Costco and a garbage truck that picks up trash.


Kylie at 5 months

Like how I buttoned up Kylie's santa outfit?

Book Review - Unbroken

2011-10-31T10:21:00.001-07:00

Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Amazing book! I can't believe all that this man went through. I really liked that I learned new things about WWII. When I think of that war I mainly think of what was happening in Europe and to the Jews, this taught me about what was going on in Japan at the same time. An excellent book that I'd recommend to everyone!

View all my reviews

Still Alive!

2011-10-31T10:15:00.000-07:00

Still alive here! Lack of blogging is due to no internet at our new house....STILL. (Joe promises me that will change soon). And I still haven't unpacked the office (only room not done) that has the device to load pics on the computer. Kylie is crying so I can't type anything more, but I am still alive!

Book Review - The Night Circus

2011-10-26T18:58:00.001-07:00

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I really liked this book and would think about it when I wasn't reading it, but I can't really pinpoint why. There was something magical about the story and the description of the circus itself was amazing. I guess I didn't give it more stories because I had questions go unanswered. I'm undecided if I would recommend this book to others.

View all my reviews

Kylie is 3 Months Old!

2011-10-06T15:29:00.000-07:00

So the part to the computer where I insert the camera chip is lost in a box somewhere, so no pictures. But I am taking them so one of these days you'll get a whole bunch to look at!

Kylie is getting so big! Her personality is starting to emerge and I just love her so much. She loves interacting with people and always has to be watching everyone. She started laughing this week and it's too adorable. She's still pretty easy going and is a total Mommy's Girl. If she gets fussy with someone she immediately stops once I start holding her. Colton is still a Mommy's Boy too. Why are my kids so obsessed with me? =)

We are so happy that Kylie is a part of our family, Colton especially. He's still really in love with her and has to touch her non-stop. I had to make a rule that when the bottle is in her mouth that he can't touch her but he tends to break that rule almost every feeding. He loves it now that she watches him and smiles and sometimes laughs. That just eggs him on even more!

She's sleeping 7pm-7:30am with one 10-minute feeding around 3am. I'm pretty sure she doesn't need this feeding and that I should probably let her cry it out, but I decided to wait until she's 4 months old to get strict about that. She takes 4-5 naps a day that last 45-60 minutes. I'd rather her take less naps for longer periods of time, but again, I'm not really doing any sleep training with her yet.

Pictures will hopefully come soon!

Book Review - Vampire Academy

2011-09-29T14:16:00.001-07:00

Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I surprisingly really enjoyed this book. So much so that I stayed up really late to read it in a day! It's your typical YA vampire book, but I think I may like it better than the Twilight series. I'll read the second in the series soon to know for sure. I'd recommend it to anyone who enjoys this genre.

View all my reviews

Book Review - 5 Spiritual Solutions for Everday Parenting Challenges

2011-09-27T17:16:00.001-07:00

5 Spiritual Solutions for Everyday Parenting Challenges by Richard Eyre

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Loved this book! There were great reminders of importance of being parents and tools/tips on how to make those roles easier. I would recommend this book to anyone.

View all my reviews

Cool New Ride

2011-09-13T13:21:00.000-07:00

Well-used car

$3 stickers from IKEA

Cool new ride!

I personally love the "spare tire" on the back

FYI - lemon oil cleans up crayon and other markings from plastic really well!

Book Review - Roseannearchy

2011-09-11T19:01:00.000-07:00

Roseannearchy: Dispatches from the Nut Farm by Roseanne Barr

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Because I'm up at weird hours of the night/morning feeding my daughter, I've started watching some new shows. One that I'm really enjoying is Roseanne's new reality show, Roseanne's Nuts. It hilarious! I thought that since I am enjoying it so much that I should read her latest book that she wrote. It's her third autobiography (haven't read the others) and I just didn't find it all that interested or funny. Plus she talked a lot about Mormons and gave very false information about the religion, and that bugged me. I wouldn't recommend it unless you're a super die hard fan of hers.

View all my reviews

Kylie is 2 Months Old!

2011-09-09T07:53:00.000-07:00

Kylie turned 2 months old this week and is getting to be such a big girl! I'll go in next week to get her stats from the doctor, but I can guarantee that she's bigger than Colton was at this age. I'm having to pull her 3-6 month clothes out already! She's smiling and cooing much more, which I absolutely love, and getting to be a pretty good sleeper. As long as she has a binky, she'll put herself to sleep, which I'm so grateful for. I had to put Colton in a baby bootcamp to teach him that concept. At night she goes to bed around 7pm, eats at 4am, then is up again at 8am. I am so happy that she's a part of our family....we all love her so much!

LIKES

Her vibrating bouncy chair. She could live in that chair all day and I have to cart it around between the two houses so she'll be happy. Colton actually really likes the chair too and is in fact sitting in it right now pretending to be a baby.
Taking naps in her swing. This can only happen when Colton is at a friends house playing though, he's too noisy otherwise.
Being cuddled. She's a total cuddler and would love to be held all day long.
Binkies! She's not a die hard, but they definitely soothe her and I'm already fearing the day I will have to take them away.
Laying on a blanket at the park. She loves staring at the trees and smiles when the wind blows on her face.
Taking baths. I give her a bath every night as part of her bedtime routine and she really gets relaxed in there.

DISLIKES

Her brother being too rough with her.....which is too often. He gets so overly excited and happy to be with her that he is too hard on her.
Being left in her carseat when she's not in the car or in a shopping cart. She screams pretty loud to get out.
Her feet being tickled. She tenses up when you touch her feet.
Me yelling at Colton. Which again happens probably a little too often. Colton's figured out that when I'm feeding Kylie that he can get away with stuff, so as I'm yelling at him to sit in timeout, Kylie starts crying. It's a lot of fun!

Joy School

2011-09-02T10:39:00.000-07:00

Colton started Joy School this week with five other kids from our new neighborhood. I was a little nervous about sending him because he's the youngest in the group, by quite a bit in toddler years, but I'm hoping this will maybe push him to actually take an interest in letters! I also wanted us to get to know people in the neighborhood, which was probably my first real reason in joining.

His first day he learned all about school, the rules to follow, and the letter M. He even made a cute craft of gluing Fruit Loops on the letter M. Can he tell you today what that letter is? Nope. So we still have some working to do. =)

Friday Randoms 8/26/11

2011-08-26T18:55:00.000-07:00

The flooring is 90% done in the new house. Yay!! They ran out of tile so there's a tiny part left to do and then a little bit of grout, and then it's done. The carpet was installed over the past couple of days and I love it. Our goal is to move in over Labor Day weekend.
Everyone keeps asking me how I'm adjusting to being a mom of two and my answer is always that it's hard. Both kids love having meltdowns at the same time, Colton has caught on to the fact that he can pretty much do anything he wants when I'm feeding Kylie, and it just takes FOREVER to get out of the house! It's not horrible, I-want-to-cry-all-day hard, just harder than before.
Colton learned from somewhere the phrase, "When I grow up I want to be a _______". So far, he's told us that he wants to be a doctor (yay!), a garbage truck driver, a fireman, and a street sweeper. It's really cute.Colton is also obsessed with creating obstacle courses in the living that involve jumping from couch to ottoman to bean bag chair to exercise trampoline to pillows then back to couch. He'll add new small additions every day, like having to jump over trucks or making the spaces to jump further apart. Needless to say, the living room is a wreck every day.
I'm really excited to move and give the kids their own room and get both kids on some sort of schedule. Colton starts Joy School next week with 5 other kids in our new neighborhood and will also be doing gymnastics and karate. So he'll kind of being forced into a schedule, but Kylie needs a good nap schedule. And blackout curtains. And a sound machine. And learn to fall asleep on her own. She's sleeping well at night: goes to bed around 8pm, wakes up for a feeding around 3am, another feeding at 7am, then is awake for the day at 9:30am. She then just cat naps throughout the day, and that's the habit I want to break.
I've really been enjoying our garden lately. Every night this week I've used zucchini, bell peppers, crookneck squash, cucumbers, tomatoes, and/or herbs in our dinners and it makes me happy. Next week I think the raspberries will be ready to eat!
A friend taught me how to make these headbands this week and it awoke the craftiness in me. All I want to do is make them, start sewing the million projects I have, and even attempt a painting project!

Book Review - The Perfect Mile

2011-08-24T11:11:00.001-07:00

The Perfect Mile: Three Athletes, One Goal, and Less Than Four Minutes to Achieve It by Neal Bascomb

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I liked this book because I learned something new about athletic history and was inspired to start running again. I've never been into track and field to know that the 4-minute mile was ever beat in the first place, let alone who did it first. I am feeling more motivated to get back into running now that I'm no longer pregnant and this book got me into thinking disciplining myself again (in aspects to working out).

View all my reviews

Blessed Kylie

2011-08-16T20:35:00.000-07:00

My camera is not working right now - I think the chip that stores the pics has gone wonky - so I missed taking pics of an important day in Kylie's life. Future Kylie....I'm sorry! It was her blessing that was not properly photographed. I used Joe's phone and got a couple of pics in her dress, but no pics of the great people who came to celebrate.

For the record, those in attendance were myself, Joe, Colton, both sets of grandparents, Papa B, Uncle Bruce and Aunt Lisa, Uncle Rocky and Aunt Debbie, the Searle Family (cousins), Aunt Carrie, Aunt Jill, the Kelly Family (friends). Joe did a great job blessing Kylie!

House Update

2011-08-12T09:14:00.000-07:00

I get asked often how the new house is coming along and so I thought I'd take some pics to show our progress so far.

Kylie is not a fan of being ignored while we work on the house. Give me some attention!!!

We have some professional painters painting the really tall walls the color on the left (it's a neutral grey color) and the color on the right will be on an accent wall in the living room and in the guest bathroom. They should be done with that today (not the guest bathroom though, we're doing that).

Colton's "dinosaur" room got painted, as well as his closet and ceiling. Kylie's room is also done and it is painted yellow.

My favorite color we've painted so far! This is the kids' bathroom. See that sky light up there? Pain in the butt to paint!!

Still deciding on bathroom tile....leaning more towards the black and white tile.

We also ripped up all the carpet and tile because it's getting replaced next week. I didn't participate in this activity, but I have been pulling staples out of the floor for the past week! Not fun.

Outdoors with Colton

2011-08-10T21:08:00.000-07:00

We really haven't had much of a summer this year. June was chilly and I was 9 months pregnant, so we didn't do a whole lot, then I had Kylie and we've been renovating the house for the month of July. So this month I'm going to try and cram summer in, while still renovating that dang house. I realized that we haven't been to my parents cabin at all, haven't been ATVing, nor have we been fishing, so I took the kids on a day trip with my parents and Papa B to their cabin. It was great because my mom stayed at the cabin with Kylie all day so I could spend all my time with Colton. I think he needed a day of one-on-one time and we all had lots of fun!

The first thing Colton wants to do when we get to the cabin is always help Papa B fill the birdfeeders up.

They found a nest in one of the birdhouses that had an egg that never hatched in it. Colton said it was a "baby sister" egg.

He felt it necessary to color on a white board inside his tent.

ATV rides with Aunt Jilly Poo!

We went on a fun hike. After this pic Colton fell and got really scraped up.

He picked some flowers for Grandma.

He loved playing in the Weber River!

He could have stayed here all day.

Kylie had fun in the cabin with Grandma!

Colton decided that this worm needed to stay in his pocket instead of on the fish hook.

He helped Papa B catch this tiger trout!

Helping Grandpa Bryan too.

Book Review - Delirium

2011-08-04T20:36:00.001-07:00

Delirium by Lauren Oliver

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book was recommended to me (thanks Cassie!) and I was a little hesitant to read it because it seems like the same concept that all the YA books are being written these days. It was somewhat predictable and reminded me a lot of The Uglies until the last third of the book. That's when things took a turn that I didn't see coming and I really enjoyed. I would recommend this book to those that like YA books.

View all my reviews

I love you!!!

2011-07-31T15:04:00.000-07:00

I've mentioned before that Colton has been a very loving big brother to Kylie. Sometimes it's a little too much love, but it's love nonetheless. When she starts crying he'll immediately try to comfort her and tell her everything is ok, once he even picked her up and brought her to me (!!!!!!!!!!!!!). He always volunteers to hold the bottle when she feeds and will pat her bum to help her burp. He gives her a million hugs and kisses throughout the day and I hope he stays this loving towards her forever!


He enjoys holding her and asks me constantly to do so throughout the day.


He's even mastered the art of watching TV while holding her!


He's thoughtful enough to pile things he likes around her when she's in the swing.

He'll even share his toys with her while she sleeps - a car, an airplane, a screwdriver, and a block. What baby wouldn't want those things?

Friday Randoms 7/22/11

2011-07-22T10:13:00.000-07:00

I'm starting to realize that the idea of giving birth and then immediately becoming a general contractor for the remodel of our new house was not the best idea I've ever had. This week has been crazy busy meeting with various subcontractors getting bids and various service people getting work done. And juggling two kids. And trying to take it a little easy so my incision can continue to heal properly. Today I'm taking the day off from all that, with the exception of going to the paint store and getting some samples.
Kylie is doing great with sleeping at night! Last night she woke up every 3 hours to eat (midnight, 3am, 6am, 9am) but the three previous nights she only woke up once to eat (3am). I'm hoping last night was a fluke and she goes back to just waking up once.
Kylie is becoming much more opinionated and let's me know that she hates baths, getting her diaper changed, changing clothes, and waiting too long for me to make her bottles. But other than that she's a sweetie!
Colton woke up with croup the other night.....who gets croup in the summer?! So I've been juggling the remodel, his sickness, and trying to keep him away from Kylie so she doesn't get sick. The doctor also put him on antibiotics just in case he gets something more serious and could pass it along to Kylie. That will really suck if she gets sick too.
The Saturday after Kylie was born we decided to reward Colton for being so good on his 4-day stay with his grandparents so we took him to Boondocks. He got to ride the bumper boats and go-karts with his dad and follow up with a few arcades.

Colton loved this ride!

Kylie's version of playing at Boondocks

This weekend Utah will be celebrating Pioneer Day and we met up with friends yesterday to go see a preview of the floats in the Days of '47 Parade.

He was quite fascinated with the balloon tower

Priscilla and Emma - Colton was camera shy

Colton's favorite float

The 3 kids chased each other in circles on the stage for at least 20 min!

Friday Randoms 7/15/11

2011-07-15T20:03:00.000-07:00

I've been a mother of two for a week and a half now and so far so good! Colton really loves his sister....a little too much. All he wants to do is hug, kiss, cuddle, hold, and tickle her. Non-stop. He also won't let me just hold and feed Kylie, he has to be on my lap getting attention too. I keep telling myself that this is much better than him acting out in a negative way to the decrease of attention he's getting, but it can be a bit annoying to have two kids on me all the time. In all, Colton has done really great with the transition and is being a loving big brother.
I'm having issues with my milk not coming in again. The lactation consultant at the hospital thought for sure it would come in this time because her theory is that my milk didn't come in with Colton due to me having to use Clomid to conceive and that messed up my hormones. Well, I didn't take Clomid this time and still not much milk. I will admit there's more coming out of me this time, but not nearly enough to sustain Kylie. After talking about it with Kylie and Colton's pediatrician, we decided to give up on trying and just stick with formula. Dang boobs!!
Kylie is a total sleepaholic. She is really only alert for a total of 2 hours a day and otherwise is in a coma. I've been waking her up every 3 hours to eat during the day and then at night I let her sleep as long as she wants, which is between 4-6 hours. It's been pretty nice and I hope she keeps this up! I keep thinking that maybe she's so calm because in a week or two she's going to become colicky and then I'll really be in for it.
The day after I had Kylie, Joe closed on our new house. Yay! Bad timing for me, but I'm just happy we have a home. Every day that I feel up to it I've been running errands to get stuff for it (new door knobs/locks, paint supplies, etc.) and getting bids on different projects. Tomorrow is our first official work day and I'm really excited to get going on this! This is going to be a crazy month for me.

Kylie is Here!

2011-07-08T20:59:00.000-07:00

Kylie has finally joined our family and we're so excited to have her here! She is so dang cute and I love being with her all the time. She's a total Kendrick baby, looks just like Joe and also looks just like Colton when he was a newborn. The only difference I really see is that Colton has a long face and Kylie's is round. She was born a full 2 lbs heavier that Colton and 2 inches longer! The doctor told me she was very snug inside me and didn't have much more room to grow. I could have told her that!

The c-section was pleasantly uneventful. Everything went as planned and I was very happy about that. The only negative I can think of is that this time around I had a bad reaction to the anesthesia and threw up about 6 times, but I have plenty of experience in that department, so no big deal!

I really enjoyed my 4 days at the hospital. The nurses and doctors are all great, the food was really good, I got waited on all the time, got to watch whatever I wanted on TV, the only person I had think about other than myself was feeding Kylie, and I got great sleep/naps! It was like being in a spa. Every night, after kids went to bed, I had girlfriends come hang out with me and that was a lot of fun too!

Kylie was really feisty the first day and had a set of lungs on her. You could hear her on the whole maternity floor....seriously. And the nurses said she has the strongest legs and wasn't cooperative about diaper changes. But after the first day, she's calmed down quite a bit and has been pretty easy! She's really healthy, which is strange for me. Colton had many issues when he was born, so I never saw him and we had to do a million tests for his first couple of months. Kylie is eating great, having plenty of wet and poopy diapers, has a tiny bit of jaundice but not enough to need light therapy, so I got to keep her with me the whole time. That was pretty foreign to me!

My milk never came in with Colton and I'm trying really hard to make sure it comes in this time. I tried hard with Colton too, but I have high hopes it will happen this time. Even the lactation consultant and nurses all think it will happen. It's been 4 days and hasn't come in yet, but I do have colostrum, so there's hope, right? I'll give it 2 weeks but will also supplement with formula just so she's not losing weight.


My first time getting to hold her

Introducing Kylie to Colton

Love newborns

This is such a Colton face!

Part of her screaming marathon

First picture!

"What the heck is going on here?!"

Proud big brother

Daddy snuggles

She was in a coma this day and never wanted to wake up

Grandma Gayle

Colton got Kylie a toy.....a dog toy

On our way home!

Ok, she looks cross-eyed here but I swear she's not! =)

Happy Fourth!

2011-07-04T19:38:00.000-07:00

Tonight we celebrated the holiday with my family - not only did we celebrate our nation's bday but also my dad's bday! Technically his bday is tomorrow but since I'm stealing his thunder and having a baby on that day, we celebrated it a day early. We went out to dinner and then did some toddler-friendly fireworks at their house.

Book Review - A Girl Named Zippy

2011-07-03T09:35:00.000-07:00

Summary: If you look at an atlas of the United States, one published around, say , 1940, there is, in the state of Indiana, north of New Castle and east of the Epileptic Village, a small town called Mooreland. In 1940 the population of Mooreland was about three hundred people; in 1950 the population was three hundred, and in 1960, 1970, and 1980, and so on. The book that follows is about a child from Mooreland, Indiana, written by one of the three hundred. It's a memoir, and a sigh of gratitude, a way of returning. I no longer live there; I can't speak for the town or its people as they are now. Someone has taken my place. Whoever she is, her stories are her own (taken in part from the prologue)

My Thoughts: This was a perfect summer read - light, easy, quick, humorous. The author perfectly captured the thought process of a child and I found myself thinking to myself, "I used to think that same way!" or "I came up with same idea as a kid!". I'd recommend this book to anyone.

Helpful Hints

2011-07-01T06:24:00.000-07:00

This month I went to a Relief Society activity was a lot of fun (they're always fun!) and very useful. We all sat around and shared advice and hints that made life easier and I thought I share some that may be of some use for you too!

Freeze grapes on a sheet then place them into a Ziploc bag for a nice frozen treat. I hadn't heard of this before but Colton loves them!
When parenting (especially parenting teens), say to your child “I wonder if . . . you've thought about this ... you considered this” when giving advice; much better than telling a child what to do. I tried this on Joe the other day and it worked pretty well.
Remedy for stinging nettle: find three different leaves (any kind) and crush them together to get some
“juice,” rub it on and it will reduce the sting. I don't think I've ever been stung by stinging nettle, but I'll for sure try this if I ever do.
For a great place to catch lots of fish: Ephraim Canyon Seely Creek!! Have any of y'all ever been there? I plan on going after I have the baby!
Read your scriptures daily before allowing yourself to read other materials. This is a good rule to follow.
Make-up removers: baby shampoo (like Johnson's and Johnson's) will remove mascara. Cetaphil Lotion (or a similar type lotion) removes makeup; then add more as a moisturizer. I've been using the baby shampoo since I heard this and it works perfectly!!
How to make eye lashes thicker: (as per YouTube) Use a curler and curl in three places – base, middle, top or base and pump it 5 times. You can use two different kinds of mascara for synergy (drug store brands are quite acceptable). Zigzag mascara starting at base (side to side all the way up), then put another coat on – multiple coats give a very full, thick look (up to 12! coats). NOTE: – Open your mouth while you apply so you won't blink!!! This is another one I started doing after the activity and it really does work!
Whenever you get “ring around collar,” 409 cleaner is a degreaser and works well. On white clothes,
Tilex (it contains bleach) works (use at your own risk but tip giver does this all the time and never has had a problem). I started using 409 on all stains on our clothes and EVERYTHING has come out! I'm a huge fan now. I haven't tried the Tilex yet.
Toothpaste that has baking soda in it on a toothbrush works to clean diamonds/jewelry. It works!
For smoothies – put yogurt that is about to expire in freezer trays and freeze for later use in drinks. Same with any fruit that is close to going bad. I do this with fruit but hadn't thought about the yogurt. Genius!
Ice cube trays are your friend – freeze chicken broth and put them in a Ziploc after frozen. Works for juice from lemons, limes, etc. Again, genius!
When traveling, and kids say “How much longer?” “Are we there yet” “my brother‟s touching me” – Be prepared by giving kids a roll of quarters (dimes, nickels or pennies work too) at the beginning of the trip – Say: “This is all yours and you can spend it any way you like when we „get there‟ – if you say anything negative, it will cost you a quarter (or whatever the denomination is).” Anytime you need an extra stop to the bathroom, it costs one quarter, if you say “he‟s looking at me,” it costs one quarter. It helps keep them happy! One of the best ideas I've ever heard!!
Repairman for washing machine recommends that if you have HE (high energy) washers, use much less soap – many need repairs because too much soap is used. 1 Tablespoon of HE soap powder is enough for any size load. And, lower spins clean clothes better. We just bought new washer/dryer for the new house and I'll definitely be following this rule.
FINGER PAINTING FOR KIDS: 1 cup Ivory flakes; 1 TB. oil; add food coloring – whip and let the
children have a ball. I don't know what Ivory flakes are but I'm going to look for them next time I'm at Walmart.
When baby is through eating, and the tray is a mess, put soap bubbles on the tray to entertain the child; this cleans the tray too. Wonderful idea!
For foaming hand soap, put regular soap in the empty original pump container (water it down a bit) for a cheap refill. We only use foaming hand soap here and I'm so glad to know that there's a cheap refill out there.

Book Review - Handling Sin

2011-06-28T20:57:00.000-07:00

Summary: On the Ides of March, our hero, Raleigh Whittier Hayes (forgetful husband, baffled father, prosperous insurance agent, and leading citizen of Thermopylae, North Carolina), learns that his father has discharged himself from the hospital, taken all his money out of the bank and, with a young black female mental patient, vanished in a yellow Cadillac convertible. Left behind is a mysterious list of seven outrageous tasks that Raleigh must perform in order to rescue his father and his inheritance.
And so Raleigh and fat Mingo Sheffield (his irrepressibly loyal friend) set off on an uproarious contemporary treasure hunt through a landscape of unforgettable characters, falling into adventures worthy of Tom Jones and Huck Finn.

My Thoughts: I really wanted to like this book more. The reviews are really great for it, so maybe it's just my pregnancy hormones that made me think that it was just "ok". I didn't like any of the main characters and thought the story could have been cut in half. But on the positive side, I really liked the end of the book and how the story came together. I wouldn't recommend this book but it got so many great reviews that maybe I would.

Colton is 3!

2011-06-27T15:02:00.000-07:00

Well he's technically not 3 yet, but play along with us here. =)

Here is Colton's 3 year old "like and dislike" list:

LIKES

Waking up every morning with a chocolate milk. He comes into our room and cuddles for about 5 minutes and then forces one of us to get up and "watch cartoons and drink chocolate milk".
His other favorite drink request is "spicy juice". This means non-watered-down juice. He's gotten smart and has caught on that we do this and is not happy about it.
For breakfast his favorite is either oatmeal or Cheerios, he'll eat whatever for lunch, and for dinner he mainly just eats vegetables. He really will eat any vegetable that we give him and his most favorite is probably salad and dip (salad dressing). He is starting to warm up to eating proteins with his veggies, but he never really touches fruits or grains/bread with dinner.
Our driveway has a slight incline and he loves riding either his bike, car, or scooter down the driveway "really fast". We do this for about an hour every day. He also is always requesting to go on an adventure with these modes of transportation, so we take "adventures" to the mailbox, a neighbors house, etc.
His favorite toys are still his trains, trucks, anything with a trailer, cars, etc. He also has to take the time to line them all up every day.
He is still VERY social and wants to play with friends all day every day. Every morning I ask him what we should do that's fun today and his response is always, "let's play with ______!" He has lots of great friends and fortunately I love their moms, so it's always fun to get together. He gets so excited to go to church because it's just a big social event for him. During sacrament, he wanders off and sits with either Jacob or Phineas, or both. We really should pay them because they are essentially babysitting our son for us. Then he gets 2 hours of nursery with amazing teachers and a whole class of fun friends!
Colton loves helping outside with the garden, lawn care, filling the bird feeders, etc. As long as he's outside he's a happy camper. He gets calls from both sets of grandparents to help him with their yard every week and he always willing to help. He even has a cool pair of Lightning McQueen gardening gloves! And his own mower so he can follow behind his grandpa's as they mow.

DISLIKES

We've been working on potty training forever now and he still is not a fan of going poop on the toilet. He's not scared of it, he just doesn't want to do it except for once or twice a week. I took him to Target and let him pick out about 8 small toys and every time he does it he gets a toy, but that's still not motivation for him. Honestly, I haven't been pushing it too hard because next month he's going to have two pretty big changes in his life - a new sister and a new house. Once he gets adjusted to those two things I think I will start getting tougher.
He has no interest right now in learning his letters. He's really good at numbers, shapes, colors, street signs and can recognize his own name, but when I try to teach him how to recognize letters or draw them, he could care less.
Last year Colton was a little fish and would do anything in the water. This year, not so much. He clings to me pretty tight and won't go down the water slides. Other moms have told me this is normal and it's just a phase they go through and I hope they're right.
Colton won't take naps in his room anymore. He'll go to sleep fast in the car and he sometimes will do it on the couch during quiet time. He needs a nap and when he does fall asleep he'll be out for about 2 hours, so it's frustrating that he won't just do it in his room every day.
He's starting to believe monsters reside in various areas of our home. They apparently move every week and he will let me know which area is "scary" that week. This week it's a hall. Last week it was next to the fridge. He has quite the imagination!

Happy Birthday Colton!

2011-06-25T08:27:00.000-07:00

We decided to celebrate Colton's birthday a couple of weeks early this year. I'm going to be having a c-section on the 5th and his real birthday is on the 9th, and for some reason I didn't see myself being in a big party mood 4 days after Baby Girl arrives!

Colton was a big helper all day and even offered to help me make his birthday cake! Of course, I really knew this meant that he just wanted to lick the spoons and bowls when I was done.

We started the festivities out by going to see Cars 2. Both sets of grandparents joined us as well as Aunt Jilly Poo.

Afterwards we went across the parking lot to Pizza Planet and ate some delicious pizza (my favorite was the baked potato pizza) and played lots of arcades, go karts, bowling, and some mini golf. Aunt Carrie joined us here but Grandpa Bryan had to leave to do some Search and Rescue training.

After all that fun we headed over to my parents house for birthday cake and presents. I made dirt cake (thank you Cassie for the idea!) and Colton got some really great presents - new shoes, shirts, pajamas, the tractor his cake came in, a rocking truck, and a Lightning McQueen scooter!

Dairy Days

2011-06-17T18:05:00.000-07:00

Today we went with some friends to Dairy Days at Thanksgiving Point and had a lot of fun! Right when we got there they handed out chocolate milk and popsicles, so the kids were heaven. Colton got to play quite a few fun games and win prizes and also learned how to make some yummy food!

Ring Toss - he pretty much just walked up to the cows and put the hula hoop around their necks.

Making Butter - they put some cream in a container and then we got to shake it up for 15 minutes and make butter. It was really yummy tasting!

Cow Race - Colton and another little girl were supposed to race each other holding the cows but they were just running around in circles. Didn't quite catch the concept.

Cow Train - always a hit! I actually put his butter in the train with him because it was such a bumpy ride and it made the butter for us.

Making Ice Cream - This was my favorite activity. They put all the ingredients in a bag that you shake for 10 minutes and then we got to eat the delicious vanilla ice cream. It was really easy to do and really did taste like homemade ice cream.

Not pictured - Colton throwing a ball and hitting milk jugs where he won a soccer ball and Cow Pie Bingo.

I think making ice cream in a bag will be a really fun summer activity for kids so I got the recipe and posted it on my recipe blog here!

Book Review - Dreams of Joy

2011-06-14T22:01:00.000-07:00

Summary: Reeling from newly uncovered family secrets, and anger at her mother and aunt for keeping them from her, Joy runs away to Shanghai in early 1957 to find her birth father—the artist Z.G. Li, with whom both May and Pearl were once in love. Dazzled by him, and blinded by idealism and defiance, Joy throws herself into the New Society of Red China, heedless of the dangers in the communist regime.

Devastated by Joy’s flight and terrified for her safety, Pearl is determined to save her daughter, no matter the personal cost. From the crowded city to remote villages, Pearl confronts old demons and almost insurmountable challenges as she follows Joy, hoping for reconciliation. Yet even as Joy’s and Pearl’s separate journeys converge, one of the most tragic episodes in China’s history threatens their very lives.

My Thoughts: This is the sequel to Shanghai Girls that was recently published and was excited to get it so fast from the library. I really enjoyed this book, I think even more so than its predecessor, which is pretty rare. All of Lisa See's books are historical fiction based on the Asian culture and I learned so many interesting things about Communism and China in the late 50's, early 60's. If you've read Shanghai Girls, you definitely need to read this one!!

New House

2011-06-13T20:52:00.000-07:00

After months of searching for a home, one house falling through due to the inspection finding mega water damage, we finally found one that we love! It's not officially ours yet, but we will be closing by the end of the month. Although we'll have the house about a week before the baby is born, there's no way I can pack and move being this pregnant. Plus, I don't want to have a newborn in a construction zone. We're going to take the month of July and re-floor, paint, and do some minor repairs on the whole house.

One requirement that I had in finding a house was for it to be older with mature trees. And boy does this house have huge trees!


Front of the house with 4 huge pines, and 3 other trees that my Grandpa told me what they were but now I can't remember. There's also a basketball goal which Colton already loves.


This tree is in the backyard and I could marry it I love it so much. I already have visions of tree houses and tire swings hanging from it.


View from the top deck - a wonderful view of a golf course and mountains!

My second love with this house is the kitchen. Amazing windows with tons of natural light PLUS a desk in the kitchen! It's a really big deal for me that the family computer be in a high-traffic area of the home so that I can always see what my kids are doing online. Plus there's space above the desk for many of my cookbooks!

My third love is the openness of all the rooms and the shutters on the windows. And that window seat. I always wanted a window seat growing up that I could read books on. Dream come true!

All the kids' rooms have window seats with storage too! Colton doesn't know how lucky he has it. (Like the pink fan on top of the window? You can definitely tell old people lived there prior!)


Another love I have of this house are the built-ins. This book case/cabinet is at the top of the stairs. I get so giddy picturing all my books in there instead of the cheap-o book cases I bought in college.

This built-in is in the dining area but I'm not really a formal dining kinda girl so I think it may store some toys and games in the cabinet and then who knows what up top. I'm not really a fine china kinda girl to be able to display it. Any ideas?

There's lots of other things I love about the house - the size, the unfinished basement that Joe can tinker with over the years, the size of the yard, location, the openness of the space, neighborhood, all the windows, the two-story deck, and the chance to do upgrades and make it our own!

Book Review - Alicia: My Story

2011-06-12T18:04:00.000-07:00

Summary: After losing her entire family to the Nazis at age 13, Alicia Appleman-Jurman went on to save the lives of thousands of Jews, offering them her own courage and hope in a time of upheaval and tragedy. Not since The Diary of Anne Frank has a young voice so vividly expressed the capacity for humanity and heroism in the face of Nazi brutality

My Thoughts: AMAZING book! I pretty much devoured it in 2 days and couldn't believe how amazing this girl is. She went through so much and survived so many tough situations that it's almost unbelievable. I would highly recommend this book to anyone!

Book Review - How Good Do We Have To Be?

2011-06-09T08:31:00.000-07:00

Summary: From the author of When Bad Things Happen to Good People comes an inspiring new bestseller that puts human feelings of guilt and inadequacy in perspective - and teaches us how we can learn to accept ourselves and others even when we and they are less than perfect. How Good Do We Have to Be? is for everyone who experiences that sense of guilt and disappointment. Harold Kushner, writing with his customary generosity and wisdom, shows us how human life is too complex for anyone to live it without making mistakes, and why we need not fear the loss of God's love when we are less than perfect. Harold Kushner begins by offering a radically new interpretation of the story of Adam and Eve, which he sees as a tale of Paradise Outgrown rather than Paradise Lost: eating from the Tree of Knowledge was not an act of disobedience, but a brave step forward toward becoming human, complete with the richness of work, sexuality and child-rearing, and a sense of our mortality. Drawing on modern literature, psychology, theology, and his own thirty years of experience as a congregational rabbi, Harold Kushner reveals how acceptance and forgiveness can change our relationships with the most important people in our lives and help us meet the bold and rewarding challenge of being human.

My Thoughts: This is a really good book that reinforces two feelings that I think many women deal with - guilt and forgiveness. I found it to be great reminders of how to have greater peace with oneself and be more accepting of our own faults and those around us. Everyone should read this book!

The Temple Quarry

2011-06-05T15:47:00.000-07:00

We decided to resume our summer tradition of going on a hike every week as a family. This was the first weekend of good weather this year, it's been so crazy here! Because I am great with child, we chose an easy, paved trail that was relatively flat so that my back wouldn't go out on me. I'm glad we did it because it turned out to be quite educational. This was the area that the original settlers excavated the granite for the Salt Lake Temple and there were signs everywhere explaining the process and facts about the area. If you live near Little Cottonwood Canyon and haven't been there yet, take the time and go!

This is what it looked like working on the granite slabs in the canyon.


Finished product!


I love it when everything is still green.


Colton was pointing and telling which rock for Joe to step on.


Just another pretty pic!

Climbing a granite boulder.


Colton just wanted to stop on top of the boulder the whole time.


Colton would only drink if Joe would squirt the water on his mouth and then let the water drip on his head.

These are the rocks he collected on the walk. You can't see them well, but the two biggest rocks are white granite.

Friday Randoms 6/3/11

2011-06-03T15:10:00.000-07:00

This weeks most eventful thing that happened was that I lost Colton for 30 minutes. Scariest 30 minutes of my life!!!!! I was at the church doing cub scouts and the next thing you know we can't find Colton. He usually goes to the nursery to play with toys or to the gym to run around but he was in neither place. After a massive manhunt and on the brink of calling the police, my friend who was driving around the neighborhood found him. He had left the church building, went across the parking lot, went to the opposite side of the Draper Temple and was playing in the sprinklers. I wanted to both kill him and never let him go once he was returned to me. His first thing he said to me was, "can I go play in the sprinklers again" and to Joe it was "can we go on an adventure?" Ummm, wasn't wandering off adventure enough?! And thanks to my pregnancy hormones I've been crying about it for 3 days now.
We won the bid on the house we wanted in Sandy. Yay!! I'm still not holding my breath because we have to do the inspection, but we're a step closer!! I'll take pics once we close and I know that for sure it's mine.
I know that most people aren't happy with the weather in Utah right now (it's June and in the low 60s today) but I'm LOVING it. I'm so stinkin' hot all the time that this is just wonderful. On Sunday it's supposed to get into the high 80s and I'm pretty sure I'm going to melt.
Here's a current list of Colton's obsessions: Cheerios, V8 Fusion, being a kitty, pretending there are fires everywhere that he must put out, watering plants, singing, and lining all his cars up in a row.

Book Review - Happiest Toddler on the Block

2011-06-03T12:21:00.000-07:00

Summary: In one of the most revolutionary advances in parenting of the past twenty-five years, Dr. Karp revealed that toddlers often act like uncivilized little cavemen, with a primitive way of thinking and communicating that is all their own. In this revised edition of his parenting classic, Dr. Karp has made his innovative approach easier to learn—and put into action—than ever before.

Combining his trademark tools of Toddler-ese and the Fast-Food Rule with a highly effective new green light/yellow light/red light method for molding toddler behavior, Dr. Karp provides fast solutions for today’s busy and stressed parents. As you discover ways to boost your child’s good (green light) behavior, curb his annoying (yellow light) behavior, and immediately stop his unacceptable (red light) behavior you will learn how to soothe his stormy outbursts with amazing success—and better yet, prevent these outbursts before they begin! And the new thirty-item glossary of Dr. Karp’s parenting techniques will save you valuable time when you need to instantly calm an out-of-control child. The result: fewer tantrums, less yelling, and more happy, loving time for you and your child.

My Thoughts: I thought this book was just ok. It started out really great and agree with the "caveman" theory with toddlers, but I don't know if I could do the whole Toddler-ese that he suggests. I can see that working on a 2-year old but not a 3-year old. In fact, I even tried it once with Colton and he looked at me like I was crazy and it didn't calm him down. I think this would totally work for some families, just not mine.

Book Review - Half Broke Horses

2011-05-28T17:54:00.000-07:00

Summary: Lily Casey Smith, this novel's feisty Texas protagonist, is a frontier teacher, a rancher, a rodeo rider, a poker player, and bootlegger. In Half Broke Horses, she survives droughts, tornadoes, floods, poverty, a bigamous husband, and whatever else fate can throw against her. Based on author Jeannette Walls' grandmother, Lily is a plausible character because she has a voice that synchronizes with her history. This novel lives up to the still gathering acclaim for Walls' novel The Glass Castle.

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this book and actually wished I had read it before reading Glass Castle. I think that I would have had a better understanding of where Rosemary was coming from when she would do such unconventional things. Half Broke Horses reminded me a lot of These Is My Words because they are both about a strong woman just trying to make it in the desert frontiers of the Southwest. I would recommend this book to anyone!

Friday Randoms 5/27/11

2011-05-27T13:30:00.000-07:00

I only have a little over a month left of this pregnancy and I'm so excited! I know it's easier to keep the baby inside of you than to take care of them once they are born, but I am so done being pregnant. My back hurts, my stomach muscles hurt, my hips hurt, I can't sleep, my allergies are out of control, it's harder to interact with Colton, I'm cranky, whine, whine whine.....
Colton still likes to talk to Baby Sister, tickle her, sing her songs, etc. and his latest is that he likes to look at her through my belly button to see what she's doing. He tells me all sorts of interesting things. For example, this morning he told me that she was reading a book. What an intelligent fetus!
We've been house hunting for quite a few months now and had a bid accepted on a house nearby but we backed out this week because there was extensive water damage and the bank (it was a foreclosure) wasn't willing to help out on the costs to fix it. So we started looking again and found another house that I like even better (another foreclosure) and we'll hear next week if we got it or not. Crossing our fingers! I know there's now way I'll be moved out before this baby is born but it would be nice to know that we do have a house to move into shortly after she's born.
Colton is getting better and better with the whole potty training thing, but it has been such a slow process! He's mastered peeing but we're struggling with pooing. He's not scared to do it, it's just a stubbornness thing. We've tried the sticker chart and bribing him with candy, so we're trying a new tactic: I bought a bunch of toys and put them in a basket. When he goes poo once, he gets to pick out a toy. Then when he goes twice he gets another, then three times another, etc. He REALLY wants those toys and I have to remind him 100 times a day about how he can get them but it seems to be working so far.

Book Review - Island of Saints

2011-05-24T06:38:00.000-07:00

Summary: While digging up a withering wax myrtle tree beside his waterfront home on the Gulf coast, author Andy Andrews unearths a rusted metal container filled with Nazi artifacts and begins an intriguing investigation that unlocks an unspoken past that took place in his backyard . . . literally . . .

. . . In the summer of 1942, as the country gears up for a full-scale commitment to WWII, German subs are dispatched to the Gulf of Mexico to sink U.S. vessels carrying goods and fuel for the war. While taking a late-night walk along the coastline, Helen Mason - recently widowed by the realities of war - discovers the near-lifeless body of a German sailor. Enraged at the site of Josef Landermann's uniform, Helen is prepared to leave the lieutenant to die when an unusual phrase, faintly uttered, changes her mind.

Set in a period simmering with anger and suspicion, Island of Saints offers the very real chronicle of a small town preparing itself for the worst the world has to offer. As cargo from torpedoed ships begins to wash up on the beach, Josef and Helen must reconcile their pasts in order to create a future.

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this book and couldn't put it down! I was reluctant to read it just because I wasn't in a "war book" kind of mood, but that was secondary to the story. This book is a perfect example of why I love historical fictions - I learned new things about WWII and it's involvement so close to home. The author is a great story teller and I would definitely read more of his books. I'd also recommend this book to anyone!

Book Review - The Beekeeper's Apprentice

2011-05-23T10:14:00.000-07:00

Summary: 1914, a young woman named Mary Russell meets a retired beekeeper on the Sussex Downs. His name is Sherlock Holmes. The Great Detective is no fool, and can spot a fellow intellect even in a fifteen-year-old woman.So, at first informally, then consciously, he takes Mary Russell as his apprentice. They work on a few small local cases, then on a larger and more urgent investigation, which ends successfully. All the time, Mary is developing as a detective in her own right, with the benefit of the knowledge and experience of her mentor and, increasingly, friend.And then the sky opens on them, and they find themselves the targets of a slippery, murderous, and apparently all-knowing adversary. Together they devise a plan to trap their enemy--a plan that may save their lives but may also kill off their relationship.This is not a "Sherlock Holmes" story. It is the story of a modern young woman who comes to know and work with Holmes, the story of young woman coming to terms with herself and with this older man who embodies the age that is past

My Thoughts: I loved this book! I'm a huge mystery/Sherlock Holmes fan so this was right up my alley. I thought the author did a great job at writing just like Conan Doyle (original Sherlock author) and I continue to admire the intellect used in solving cases. I will definitely read the rest of this series and recommend it to mystery fans.

Grandpa Bryan

2011-05-13T14:29:00.000-07:00

My dad is one of Colton's favorite people and loves it when he's home from Africa! When my dad's home it's his time off, so we get to play together almost every day. Colton helps him with yard work, washing his truck, goes "swimming" in the hot tub, eat lunch together, build fires in the fire pit, and many more fun activities.

Today Colton got to try his new golf club out at the driving range with Grandpa Bryan. For being a 2-year old (almost 3) I thought he did really well! He connected with the ball and would hit it about 12-feet in front of him, which I think is great for his age. He also loved filling the divots with sand and washing Grandpa's golf clubs for him. I even hit a few balls and did really well for being 32 weeks pregnant!

Mother's Day 2011

2011-05-09T09:46:00.000-07:00

I had a great Mother's Day weekend! Saturday morning Joe took me to brunch at Thanksgiving Point and it was sooooo delicious. I'm making that a yearly tradition from now on. Afterwards, we went to the nursery and bought all the vegetables and herbs that we plan on growing this summer, and then came home and worked in the garden. I loved it! We bought Colton some Lightning McQueen gardening gloves, so he was in heaven too. He's actually always been a great helper in the garden and didn't fail us over the weekend. On Sunday we had breakfast with Joe's parents - the men made French toast with fruit. And then we had dinner with my parents - my dad made us ribs and potato salad and Joe provided fruit and a green salad. It was a great day!

I'm so happy that I get to be Colton and Baby Girl's mom. I love them both so much! I'm also grateful for a wonderful husband because he really does help me be a better mother. I wanted to record some cute things that Colton has been saying lately that makes me happy to be a mom:

Whenever anyone asks him who loves him the most he immediately answers, "My Mommy does!"
"Mommy, I love your beautiful hair."
"I'm going to make you sad! I'm going to make you cry!" When I say ok to this he then says "No Mommy! No!" I then pretend to cry and then he gives me hugs and kisses and says, "It's ok Mommy, I love you." It's really cute.
"Mommy, I'm tired. Can I sleep on your arm?"
"Let's have some fun today!"
I'll ask Colton if we're best friends and he answers, "Yes, you're my favorite!"
Any time he sings a song, tries to tickle, or reads a book to Baby Sister.
"I have strong muscles, I'll do that for you."
"Mommy, are you feeling ok? Do you want a massage?" Then he pokes me over and over again, that's his definition of a massage.
"I need you to sing me a song so I'll be happy."
There's probably more cute things but that's all I can think of right now!

Fun In The Snow....In May!

2011-05-04T07:20:00.000-07:00

We decided to take a day trip to my parent's cabin this past weekend to go sledding and snowmobiling since we didn't do much of it this winter due to my being sick all the time. I'm glad we did because I haven't heard Colton laugh for so long! He absolutely loved sledding, especially on the steeper hills that Daddy would take him on or when he'd fall of the sled. The weather was perfect because it was sunny and warm (for being in the snowy mountains). If I had been able to zip my snow bib up, I would have taken my sweatshirt off and just worn a t-shirt!

My dad bringing the sledders up the hill

Joe thought it would be fun to sled off the rocks, like a jump. It didn't really work.

Going down with Daddy, who was way more fun than Mommy because she's slow.

I love his penguin hat!

Way at the bottom of the hill.

Family pic!

Bringing the sledders back up.

Book Review - Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind

2011-05-01T20:53:00.000-07:00

Summary: Miss Julia, a recently bereaved and newly wealthy widow, is only slightly bemused when one Hazel Marie Puckett appears at her door with a youngster in tow and unceremoniously announces that the child is the bastard son of Miss Julia's late husband. Suddenly, this longtime church member and pillar of her small Southern community finds herself in the center of an unseemly scandal-and the guardian of a wan nine-year-old whose mere presence turns her life upside down.

My Thoughts: I really liked this book. It captured me right at the beginning and held my interest all day as I read it! I just love novels set in the South, especially when the women are sassy, and I also enjoyed the mystery of this book. It looks like this book is the beginning of a series and I want to continue reading it, which is rare for me! I would recommend this book to anyone.

Tulip Festival

2011-04-28T18:35:00.000-07:00

Today Colton and I joined my cousins, their kids, my aunt and Grandpa B at Thanksgiving Point for their annual Tulip Festival and had a great time! The best part of the outing was that we rented golf carts due to the fact that we had two pregnant women and a great-grandpa in the party. =)

Brody, Colton and Aspen playing in a wagon

All the great-grandkids wanted to ride with Papa B

Smelling the pretty tulips

Brody, Colton, Aspen, and Ellory

Colton and Papa B

Notice how Aspen always poses cute and the boys could care less?

Feeding the giant goldfish

Getting all wet

More wetness

Aunt Jilly Poo!

Trying to catch the geese

The largest man-made waterfall in the world

Colton is trying to whistle with his fingers like Papa B

The boys are telling us to stop so we don't hit them

Book Review - Peace Like A River

2011-04-27T07:43:00.000-07:00

Summary: Leif Enger's debut, Peace Like a River, is one such work. His richly evocative novel, narrated by an asthmatic 11-year-old named Reuben Land, is the story of Reuben's unusual family and their journey across the frozen Badlands of the Dakotas in search of his fugitive older brother. Charged with the murder of two locals who terrorized their family, Davy has fled, understanding that the scales of justice will not weigh in his favor. But Reuben, his father, Jeremiah -- a man of faith so deep he has been known to produce miracles -- and Reuben's little sister, Swede, follow closely behind the fleeing Davy.

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this book! I found all the characters to be very likable, the story was intriguing, and the theme of faith was great. I had heard of this book for quite awhile and my mother-in-law recently read it in a book club she's in, so I promptly borrowed it. Glad I did! I would recommend this book to just about anyone.

Book Review - Addition

2011-04-25T21:30:00.000-07:00

Summary: Grace Lisa Vandenburg orders her world with numbers: how many bananas she buys, how many steps she takes to the cafe, how many poppy seeds are in her daily piece of orange cake. Every morning she uses 100 strokes to brush her hair, 160 strokes to brush her teeth. But Grace's life is about to change on a day when all the tables at her regular cafe are full, and a stranger, Seamus Joseph O'Reilly (19 letters in his name, just like Grace's), invites her to sit with him. Because no matter how organized you are, how many systems you put in place, you can't plan for people, who are unpredictable and full of possibilities. And suddenly, Grace may be about to lose count of the number of ways she can fall in love.

My Thoughts: This was a light, humorous book that came highly recommended to me. I enjoyed the insights of someone who lives with OCD as well as the main character's wit and humor. I could have lived without the details of the sex scenes (not necessary at all) and I got frustrated at her therapists. I don't want to say more about that and ruin the book for anyone. My favorite part was Grace realizing that "average isn't normal". I'd recommend this book for anyone in the mood for an easy, funny read.

Happy Easter!

2011-04-24T08:18:00.000-07:00

Easter has been so much fun this year because Colton understands not only who the Easter Bunny is and what he does, but he also understands who Jesus is and is beginning to understand all the great things He does for us too. I read this wonderful talk by President Monson this morning titled He is Risen! and it's been a great reminder as to why we celebrate this holiday. Please take the time to read it today!

Yesterday morning there was a neighborhood Easter egg hunt at the church and we had a great time! It's so fun getting to hang out with friends, eat doughnuts, and watch our little ones hunt for eggs. For many of the kids, including Colton, this was their first time to hunt for eggs. I was nervous that Colton would pick up one egg and just focus on that and the candy inside but he quickly understood the concept and had his bag filled up in no time!

This morning Colton woke up to having his Easter bag filled with some fun toys. He also was amazed to see that the Easter Bunny made a special stop in our backyard and left eggs everywhere!

Book Review - Matched

2011-04-21T16:54:00.000-07:00

Summary: Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate . . . until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black.
The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow.

My Thoughts: I reserved this book at the library recently and was #458 in line to get, which excited me because it must mean that it's a great book! My mom was nice enough to buy the book and let me borrow it so I didn't have to wait 2 years to get it. As I started reading the book I kept asking myself, "Have I read this before?" I did this throughout the whole book and I figured out why. The story is a mixture of Uglies and Hunger Games with a sprinkle of The Giver. So essentially it's all the popular dystopian YA books written recently all rolled into one. It is a series, and I don't think I'll continue reading them, although I will admit the interest is piqued to at least know what happens to the characters. I would only recommend this book to people who love the previous books I mentioned.

More Fun With Cousins!

2011-04-18T17:11:00.000-07:00

While Colton's cousins were in town, we tried to jam-pack as much fun in to the trip as possible! We took the kids bowling and while Dallen went golfing with the guys we took Kate and Colton to the Thanksgiving Point farm and dinosaur museum.

Uncle Chad helped the kids line up their ramps

Colton insisted on carrying his own ball to the ramp.

Cousin Dallen

Colton decided to kick it up a notch and wear sunglasses while bowling.

Aunt Shellie was holding Colton while he was pretending to be a baby.

Kate and Colton at the farm.

Feeding the lambs

Kate thought the chickens would like her sucker better.

Naughty kids get put in jail!

Grandma Gayle and Colton riding the tractors.

Both Grandmas on a wagon ride.

Future rodeo champs!

Building a dinosaur

Putting the dino bones back in the ground to be excavated.

Making a dinosaur with the bones - really hard to do!

Playing in the water and sand.

Pretending to be turtles

We miss Chad, Shellie, Dallen and Kate and hope they move back to Utah SOON!!!!!

Book Review - A Captain's Duty

2011-04-16T18:35:00.000-07:00

Summary: It was just another day on the job for fifty-three-year-old Richard Phillips, captain of the Maersk Alabama, the United States-flagged cargo ship which was carrying, among other things, food and agricultural materials for the World Food Program. That all changed when armed Somali pirates boarded the ship. The pirates didn't expect the crew to fight back, nor did they expect Captain Phillips to offer himself as hostage in exchange for the safety of his crew. Thus began the tense five-day stand-off, which ended in a daring high-seas rescue when U.S. Navy SEALs opened fire and picked off three of the captors.

My Thoughts: My mother-in-law got this from the library and really liked it then insisted that I read it. At first, it really freaked me out. My dad works in Africa every other month on oil rigs and the threat of pirates is very real for him. So the combo of my dad dealing with pirates in real life and my pregnancy hormones was not a good one. Then my hormones got a little under control and it wasn't scaring me as much, but I couldn't put the book down! I really enjoyed reading about his experience and also his family's experience during the whole ordeal. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to read an heroic biography.

Book Review - Nourishing Tradtions

2011-04-15T15:45:00.000-07:00

Summary: Rather than jumping on the bandwagon of vegetarianism, nonfat dieting, soy mania, or any of the other eating fads that currently inform our sense of "proper nutrition," this book looks to tradition, to the foods that have provided us with sustenance and strength for centuries, as the basis of a nutritious and health-conscious diet. Provocative but essentially grounded in logic and science, Nourishing Traditions recommends a diet including fats, oils (both in moderation), and whole grains, and warns readers of the dangers of some of the nutritional theories that are currently in vogue.

My Thoughts: This book is half-nutritional info and half-cookbook. I LOVED the nutritional info and learned so much from it. The cookbook is a little out of my league. It talks about sprouting your own grains, making yogurt and cheese with your own raw milk and whey, and other things that I just am not into at this point in my life. I'm all about eating healthier, but this took it to a level that I'm just not at. So I would highly recommend the book for the first half which is great info on nutrition. I'm not sure that I believe every little thing she says, but I think as a whole she has a point - if our ancestors didn't eat it, we shouldn't either. I also like the section on vitamins and minerals where she pointed out possible deficiencies based on symptoms that you have. Very interesting stuff!

Dallen's Baptism

2011-04-14T19:39:00.000-07:00

We were so happy that Dallen got to be baptized in Utah so we could be there to support him. Colton thought the whole experience was so cool and had to be front row for everything. Great talks were given and all of the cousins got to sing a song together. It was so cute! Colton had no fear and got up and sang with all the kids but had to watch one of the older boys the whole time singing.

Chad and Dallen

Colton LOVES his Uncle Chad!

All of Dallen's cousins singing (who were in town)

Colton watching the older boy singing but still singing along!

I make all my nieces and nephews a blanket for their baptisms as a reminder of the "Comforter" that the receive that day - the Holy Ghost.

Book Review - Making Rounds With Oscar

2011-04-13T19:33:00.000-07:00

Summary: They thought he was just a cat. When Oscar arrived at the Steere House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Rhode Island he was a cute little guy with attitude. He loved to stretch out in a puddle of sunlight and chase his tail until he was dizzy. Occasionally he consented to a scratch behind the ears, but only when it suited him. In other words, he was a typical cat. Or so it seemed. It wasn't long before Oscar had created something of a stir.
Apparently, this ordinary cat possesses an extraordinary gift: he knows instinctively when the end of life is near.
Oscar is a welcome distraction for the residents of Steere House, many of whom are living with Alzheimer's. But he never spends much time with them--until they are in their last hours. Then, as if this were his job, Oscar strides purposely into a patient's room, curls up on the bed, and begins his vigil. Oscar provides comfort and companionship when people need him most. And his presence lets caregivers and loved ones know that it's time to say good-bye.
Oscar's gift is a tender mercy. He teaches by example: embracing moments of life that so many of us shy away from.

My Thoughts: I was hesitant to read this book because I'm not a cat person. Not that I don't like cats but I'm allergic to them and can't stand the smell of kitty litter. Anyways, this really isn't a cat book. Yes, it's about a cat but really the story is about dementia. I learned a lot about this disease and really loved the story. I've always thought that animals have a sixth sense about things and this book confirms it. It's a true story, by the way. I would recommend it to anyone to read!

Mid-week Getaway!

2011-04-11T09:24:00.000-07:00

Last week our favorite people flew in to town - Chad, Shellie, Dallen and Kate!! We picked them up from the airport and immediately drove down to St. George for a few days. We had so much fun with everyone, Colton especially had fun. He LOVES his cousins! He also has a new obsession for Uncle Chad. Joe and I pretty much don't exist when they're in town.

Feeding the ducks

Joe and Chad went on a bike ride and then came to visit us. Colton was getting too close to the edge so Joe had to supervise.

Frisbee Golf was played often!

We spent one day at Snow Canyon and did some hikes.

Chad made us nervous by climbing up this.

So of course Joe had to follow suit.

Cute cousins

Some settlers of the area wrote their name on this rock in the late 1800s.

Up on the ledge!

I plan on kidnapping these two and keeping them in Utah!! =)

The kids took a hiking break to play in the sand.

We also hiked on some petrified sand dunes.

The pregnant lady wearing flip flops decided to not climb that high, so I became the honorary photographer.

The men and children went even higher making us womenfolk a little nervous.

A crack in the dunes was found so of course it had to be explored.

Movie night!

We needed to celebrate Chad, Dallen and Grandpa B's birthdays so we headed over to Pirate Island.

The men got obsessed with getting tickets on this game.

Three of some of my favorite boys - Joe, Colton and Grandpa B!

We ended the trip at Jumpin' Jacks so the kids could burn some energy before the car ride home.

Colton loved the fast slides

It was hard taking pictures of the kids because they never were still!

Friday Randoms 4/1/11

2011-04-01T21:07:00.001-07:00

It's FINALLY starting to feel like spring around here! We've cleaned up the backyard and have playing a lot back there, had picnics at the park with friends, and today we went to the zoo. Apparently the rest of Utah thought it would be great to go to the zoo, I have never seen it so crowded! Usually we can walk right on to the train ride and carousel but today we had to wait at least 30 min for both. This was our first trip to the zoo that I didn't take the stroller or wagon and just made Colton walk the whole time. He did pretty good and only asked that I carry him a couple of times. I told him no and we would just sit on a bench for a few minutes.
Next week we're taking a quick trip down to St. George so I thought I'd save a few bucks and detail my car myself. Not a good idea for so many reasons. I never get it looking as good as the pros do. I'm pregnant - enough said. And Colton made it even more messier so I had more things to clean up. He destroyed the garage while I was cleaning the car out, then while I was cleaning the garage he got in the clean car and dumped everything out that I had organized! I was so mad at him and turned into crazy mom. Luckily Joe came home and took him to run some errands otherwise who knows what I would have done to that child. Lesson learned - pay people to detail the car!!!
Colton has developed a fear of thunderstorms, which we rarely have, but the fear is more about the possibility of the storms coming. He's constantly wanting to bring his outside toys in so that the "thunder" doesn't get them and yesterday he started crying and having a tantrum when I went to sit outside because the "storm clouds were coming to get us". I pointed out that there wasn't a cloud in the sky, but he was convinced there was. The funniest part is that once the storm is here, we watch it and sometimes open the back door to smell the rain and he thinks it's cool. I don't know what his deal is.
A friend recently gave me some blue agave that she had bought for her husband but he refuses to eat and she knows I'm half-hippie and would love it. I hadn't ever tried it before but I do love it! Every day for lunch this week Colton and I have shared an organic peanut butter and agave sandwich. Someday I'll have to do a post on how I'm becoming more and more of a hippie with the food I eat and health products I use.
So I didn't even realize that today was April Fools until about 8pm tonight. It's proof that me being pregnant and Joe being a workaholic don't equal very fun people right now!! Which is also why my blog is pretty boring right now and my food blog is so quiet. Next week lots of fun stuff will be happening so I'll actually post pics of our life then.

Book Review - Anne of Green Gables Series

2011-03-28T10:43:00.000-07:00

Summary: When Anne Shirley arrives at Green Gables farm on Prince Edward Island, she surprises everyone: first of all, she is a girl. Marilla Cuthbert and her brother, Matthew, had specifically asked for an orphan boy. She has bright red hair that won't manage and a mouth that won't shut. Nothing will ever be the same at Green Gables!

My Thoughts: I've spent the last month reading this whole series because I hadn't read them since I was like 10. And I don't think I read the whole series then, just the first few books. I really enjoyed books 1-3 and then book 5. They focused mainly on Anne and her life. She's such an amazing character that you just want to keep on reading about her! Book 4 was in the form of a letter and I didn't really like that. The starting with book 6 the rest of the series is about her kids, which I thought was just ok. Towards the end, I was excited more about finishing it then actually finding out what happens to everyone. Still, I would recommend the series to readers!

Friday Randoms 3/25/11

2011-03-25T17:51:00.000-07:00

I finally have a computer again so maybe I will be a consistent blogger again! They key word in that sentence is "maybe". I'm still pregnant, so that makes it a challenge. =)
About two weeks ago I started getting a sharp pain in my ribs and was sure that I ha broken one somehow. I went to the doctor yesterday and I have inflamed cartilage in my ribs. I got a cortisone shot in my ribs (which sounds painful but still isn't as painful as the Lovenox shots I give myself every night) and that has helped the pain a little. But it seriously feels like a knife is stabbing me in the side every time I sneeze, cough, blow my nose, or throw up. It's fun being pregnant!!
Colton is talking so much better and saying the funniest sentences. He's also becoming quite the singer. He literally just plays with his toys and sings to himself (really loud) throughout the day. It cracks me up. In addition to the increased talking he's also learning to have a bit of attitude and not talk very nicely to adults when things don't go his way. That's become his biggest cause for time-outs.
Today we went to Joe's uncle's funeral and it was a great reminder of how precious life. He passed away because of complications to a routine surgery to have a kidney stone blasted. Funerals are so sad to me because I constantly think of everyone around me dying and what their funerals will be like but they also make me want to be a better person so there's nice things to say about me. Uncle Pat will be missed!
The weather around here has been quite bipolar lately. One day we'll be spending the day at the park with beautiful weather and then the next day it's snowing. There was a white out while I was driving to the funeral in Tooele and now there's clear sunny skies!
I've been craving two really bad things lately - tater tots and cake doughnuts. It really takes all the self discipline I have (which isn't much) to not eat these things daily. I try to just treat myself once a week but I seriously could eat them all day long. I've only gained 11 pounds so far and I'm trying to not go overboard this second half of the pregnancy!
We've begun the house hunting process and have been to see a few houses. There's been a couple that we like but nothing that we're in love with and just have to have. We've been looking in both Sandy and Draper and the more I look the more I just want to stay in Draper. I like this city a lot!

Escape to Warmth

2011-03-06T15:41:00.000-08:00

Over President's Day weekend, we decided to take a break from the cold and snow and head snow for warmer climates. We spent the weekend at my Grandpa's house in St. George and had great time!

The first day we got there we met up with my long-lost BFF Laurie and her family for a night of bowling. They live in Houston but were in town visiting family so it was great to see them and have our boys play together. My battery died right away so she took all the pics but here's the one I got of Colton and Joe bowling right before it died.
Not pictured: Colton throwing tantrums in between his turn because he still has not embraced the idea of sharing and because he skipped a nap that day.

The following day it rained all day so we decided to go to the Parade of Homes and check out some million dollar homes. It was a lot of fun and Colton actually enjoyed it quite a bit too. He loved going in the showers because they were the walk-in kind with 100 different shower heads and he thought that was too awesome. He also was fascinated with all the laundry rooms. That boy loves his laundry! We spent half the next day looking at "pretty houses" too which got Joe really anxious to start doing our own home searching. Yay!

Because of the dead battery situation, I didn't get to capture our duck feeding adventures, eating at some fun restaurants, Joe and I got to go on a breakfast date (YAY!), Joe got to go golfing with his dad and his dad's friends (they went down for the weekend too) while Colton and I did some shopping.

We also visited the World Wildlife Museum and had a lot of fun there! I got a battery by this time, so here's some pics:

This was in the kids area, there was a fort and tent with camping gear for the kids to play on/with.

The museum gives kids binoculars to look at the animals better with and Colton thought that was the COOLEST thing in the world.

The museum also gave us the wand that Colton is holding and it's a recording to tell you about the different habitats, regions of the world, etc. Colton thought it was a cell phone and would talk back to the recording.

That summed up most of our excursions. It was a nice break to get out of town, plus we missed another snow storm that was occurring at home. Can't beat that! Oh, and on our shopping trip, this was my favorite item that I bought:

Go Cowboys!!

Book Review - Shanghai Girls

2011-03-05T06:48:00.000-08:00

Summary: In 1937, Shanghai is the Paris of Asia, a city of great wealth and glamour, the home of millionaires and beggars, gangsters and gamblers, patriots and revolutionaries, artists and warlords. Thanks to the financial security and material comforts provided by their father’s prosperous rickshaw business, twenty-one-year-old Pearl Chin and her younger sister, May, are having the time of their lives. Though both sisters wave off authority and tradition, they couldn’t be more different: Pearl is a Dragon sign, strong and stubborn, while May is a true Sheep, adorable and placid. Both are beautiful, modern, and carefree . . . until the day their father tells them that he has gambled away their wealth and that in order to repay his debts he must sell the girls as wives to suitors who have traveled from California to find Chinese brides.

As Japanese bombs fall on their beloved city, Pearl and May set out on the journey of a lifetime, one that will take them through the Chinese countryside, in and out of the clutch of brutal soldiers, and across the Pacific to the shores of America. In Los Angeles they begin a fresh chapter, trying to find love with the strangers they have married, brushing against the seduction of Hollywood, and striving to embrace American life even as they fight against discrimination, brave Communist witch hunts, and find themselves hemmed in by Chinatown’s old ways and rules.

My Thoughts: I loved this book! So much so that I read it in a day. I'm really enjoying Lisa See's Chinese historical fiction books and am learning to much about not only history but also the Chinese culture. This is Lisa's second book I've read and one common theme between the two is misunderstanding/misperception of events which can be so relate-able to life. I'm really hoping that Lisa writes a sequel to this book because the ending didn't completely resolve for me. Read this book!

Friday Randoms 3/4/11

2011-03-03T19:55:00.000-08:00

My mom is pretty mad at me for not doing these very often but I've had great excuses - I'm pregnant, I've been sick, my computer crashed so I only get limited to the internet at night when Joe brings his work laptop home, and I'm pregnant. So I'll try to sum up some random thoughts from the past few weeks:

I am sooooo sick of being sick. My morning sickness is actually getting a lot better. I'm having more good days than bad. But we've had about every other sickness this winter. The latest is that last week Colton and I both had bronchitis. I'm mostly over it, I just have a lingering cough. Colton is the same way but he also is a hot mess because of the antibiotics. They make him super grumpy. I'm so ready for a healthy family!!!!!!!
I have a great friend in the neighborhood who has three girls and brought me over to big tubs of baby girl clothes, sizes 0-6 months. This baby girl is going to have a new outfit every day for her first 6 months! It's getting me so excited for her to come and get to dress her up every day. =)
So the second question I get after what gender is the baby is what names do we have picked out. So just in case you have the same question, here's the answer: the top two names right now are Kirsten and Kelly. Nothing is set in stone at this point, but those are our two faves right now. And the middle name will be Lianne, no matter the first name. (that's my middle name, btw)
Colton has always been a great helper and enjoyed cleaning but he's gotten OBSESSED with cleaning. Not so much picking up and organizing his toys, but every day he vacuums the house, he does ALL the dishes, he dusts daily, will shovel the snow, help Joe take the trash out, and I'm sure there's more that I can't think of. It really is awesome, especially since I hate cleaning. And for a two year old, he does a really good job at cleaning too. In this sense, he really is his fathers child. I mean, he actually begs me to do dishes so I have to think of ways to dirty up some dishes throughout the day so that he always has dishes to clean. And if I don't have any for him, he re-washes dishes. How awesome would if be if he always stayed this way?! Some lucky lady out there who marries him will owe me big time.
Colton's also talking way better and we're shocked at some of the sentences he says. And something else he has started doing that completely melts my heart is that he loves to sing now. His faves are Old McDonald, Twinkle Twinkle, ABC song, 5 Little Ducks, 3 Little Monkeys, This Little Light of Mine, I Am a Child of God, and the theme songs to all the shows he watches. Seriously, it melts my heart and makes me giddy to hear him sing. LOVE IT!!!!
I didn't post anything about Valentine's Day and that's mainly because we didn't do much. I think the most festive thing we did was that Colton passed out dinosaur valentine cards to his friends. I had great intentions and then didn't feel well enough to follow through on anything.
I think everyone can agree with me, but spring cannot come soon enough!! I'm so ready to go outside. If it's over 45 degrees and you can see a glimpse of the sun, then I pretend it's spring, put my flip flops on, grab Colton and book it to the park. I get hot while I'm pregnant so those low temps actually feel great to me! All I need is sunlight and no wind and I'm good.

Book Review - The Big Short

2011-02-26T13:33:00.000-08:00

Summary: The real story of the crash began in bizarre feeder markets where the sun doesn't shine and the SEC doesn't dare, or bother, to tread: the bond and real estate derivative markets where geeks invent impenetrable securities to profit from the misery of lower- and middle-class Americans who can't pay their debts. The smart people who understood what was or might be happening were paralyzed by hope and fear; in any case, they weren't talking.

My Thoughts: This was an interesting book about the recent housing/financial markets crash and highlighted a handful of individuals who predicted its demise. The bet against the market so that when it all crashed, they ended up on top. It's frustrating to see the greed that so many at the top have, how uneducated people with power really are, and how the government is too involved. The only things I didn't like about the book was that I felt it could have been condensed into a shorter book and that when the author would quote people they dropped the f-bomb every other word.

Baby Chicks

2011-02-08T10:26:00.001-08:00

About a month ago I wrote about how Colton got to write his name on an egg and put it in the incubator at Thanksgiving Point. Well his egg has hatched and we got to go and see the baby chicks. Colton was so unbelievably excited and sat and stared at his chicks (he thinks they all came out of his egg) for about 30 minutes the other day. He's a proud papa. =)

Although it's super cold outside, it's great going to the farm in the winter because you have the whole place to yourself and the animals are a lot more active than in the summer. The make a lot more sounds and move around more.

Friday Randoms 2/4/11

2011-02-04T12:48:00.000-08:00

The family is finally over having colds but we all have lingering coughs and runny noses. With it being so stinkin' cold outside that I don't see those going away anytime soon. Boo.
I've been giving myself daily injections for about a week and a half now and it's not as bad doing it myself. My favorite nurse at my OB's office trained me for like an hour one day and I so I felt really confident doing it. It hurts a lot less when I do it versus Joe or a nurse because I have total control over how the needle goes in me and how fast I inject the medicine. For someone who is terrified of needles, I'm proud of myself!!
Colton is getting funnier and funnier every day. He's also turning into a little hypochondriac who wants to go to the "doctor's house" every day because he's hurt himself or is "sick". He really does love going to the doctor's office and thinks it's hilarious when the doctors check him out, even when he's really sick. He likes to tell me that the doctor will "feel better me".
Lately Colton likes to play "baby" with me which means he gets to act like a baby. I wrap him up and carry him around, he does a pretend baby cry, I pretend to feed him a bottle, etc. It's really cute.

He is also becoming less aggressive amongst his friends. He rarely hits or pushes anymore. His teachers in nursery even tell me that he's become really good at sharing. Yay!!
Joe got an iPhone for Christmas which has been a hit for the whole family. Colton has a few games that he loves - a farm one, a dinosaur one, and Ninja Fruit. My two obsessions are Bejeweled, Angry Birds, and Oregon Trail. I really am the best pioneer ever on Oregon Trail - my family always arrives intact and healthy and I get to Oregon ahead of time! Joe is trying to convince me to get an iPhone too but I'm pretty sure that I'd just sit at home all day, play games, and ignore Colton. So it's probably better that I kick it old school and just use a regular phone.

Book Review - The Glass Castle

2011-01-27T14:04:00.000-08:00

Summary: Jeannette Walls grew up with parents whose ideals and stubborn nonconformity were both their curse and their salvation. Rex and Rose Mary Walls had four children. In the beginning, they lived like nomads, moving among Southwest desert towns, camping in the mountains. Rex was a charismatic, brilliant man who, when sober, captured his children's imagination, teaching them physics, geology, and above all, how to embrace life fearlessly. Rose Mary, who painted and wrote and couldn't stand the responsibility of providing for her family, called herself an "excitement addict." Cooking a meal that would be consumed in fifteen minutes had no appeal when she could make a painting that might last forever.

Later, when the money ran out, or the romance of the wandering life faded, the Walls retreated to the dismal West Virginia mining town -- and the family -- Rex Walls had done everything he could to escape. He drank. He stole the grocery money and disappeared for days. As the dysfunction of the family escalated, Jeannette and her brother and sisters had to fend for themselves, supporting one another as they weathered their parents' betrayals and, finally, found the resources and will to leave home.

My Thoughts: Loved this book! The story is crazy in a fascinating way and what was even weirder for me is that I know people like this. Not to this degree, but pretty dang close. I really like books that show how people grew up with all odds against them but fought, worked hard, and came out on top. I would recommend this book to anyone.

Book Review - Deceit: A Novel

2011-01-26T09:30:00.000-08:00

Summary: Sometimes the truth hides where no one expects to find it.
Joanne Weeks knows Baxter Jackson killed Linda---his second wife and Joanne's best friend---six years ago. But Baxter, a church elder and beloved member of the town, walks the streets a free man. The police tell Joanne to leave well enough alone, but she is determined to bring him down. Using her skills as a professional skip tracer, she sets out to locate the only person who may be able to put Baxter behind bars. Melissa Harkoff was a traumatized sixteen-year-old foster child in the Jackson household when Linda disappeared. At the time Melissa claimed to know nothing of Linda's whereabouts---but was she lying?

My Thoughts: I don't know where I heard about this book to put on my Kindle - if someone told me about it, I saw it on a book list, it was free that day, etc. Nonetheless, it was a really good mystery. The whole story was suspenseful, a little bit predictable (although I'd like to contribute that to my great detective skills), and was an easy read. I'd recommend it to mystery lovers out there.

Book Review - The Swiss Family Robinson

2011-01-25T12:23:00.000-08:00

Summary: A terrible storm strands a Swiss pastor, with his wife and four sons, on a tropical island. Luckily, the Robinsons are optimistic and inventive, and with what they salvage from the wrecked ship, and the island's abundant fruits, plants, and animals, they soon adapt--each day discovering new dangers, skills and delights in their strange new life.

My Thoughts: I wanted to read this book because the Disney movie is one of my favorites. Well it turns out that the book is nothing at all like the movie - they don't live in the treehouse for too long, no pirates, no races around the island on animals they catch, no tigers, 4 sons instead of 3, and a few more things. But that's ok because I still really enjoyed it. It was a great adventure/survival book with great lessons taught by the parents to their 4 sons. I told Joe that he has to read it next because I want to be parents like the Robinsons. I do have to add that it's not totally realistic which could bug some people. The dad knows everything about botany, astronomy, wildlife, etc. and the island inhabits almost every animal known to man. But that didn't really bug me, so I enjoyed it a lot! If you enjoyed Robinson Crusoe then you would really enjoy this book.

Friday Randoms 1/21/11

2011-01-21T19:16:00.000-08:00

This was sick week for us. Colton got croup and has a molar coming in. I had a stress fracture in my foot that I've been neglecting for about a month but after swimming with Colton last Friday, it became too painful to ignore. I'm wearing a boot now. Boo.
I learned that when I'm pregnant, my IQ drops a good 20 points. I used to play word games every night before going to bed and now I can't do them at all. I stare at the words and nothing comes to mind. It's crazy.
I'm craving the exact same types of food that I craved when I was pregnant with Colton. Does that mean I'm having another boy?! But other differences with this pregnancy is that I'm way more emotional and my face has horrible acne. So does that mean I'm having a girl?! I'll find out next month and I can't wait.
Despite the fact that it's still in the 30's outside, today was sunny and inversion-free and that made me so happy! Colton got to ride his bike with friends today. Please stay sunny!!!!
I'm loving the new American Idol. Even Joe wants to watch it now because he likes Steven Tyler. I didn't think I'd like J.Lo at all, but she's not as annoying as I thought she'd be. And I'm liking that it's not all about Ryan Seacrest anymore.
I went to Costco tonight with my parents and ran into about 5 different friends/neighbors. Apparently that's the place to hang out on a Friday night! I loved it and I love my friends/neighbors.

Top 10 Books From 2010

2011-01-18T09:44:00.000-08:00

I meant to do this closer to New Years, but morning sickness has been kicking my butt. So better late than never!

Here are my 10 most favorite books that I read in 2010 (in no particular order):

Mitten Strings for God by Katrina Kenison - This is a book I plan on buying because it had such wonderful advice on parenting and keeping things simple.

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See - I loved learning about the different customs that girls went through in China (some still do) and the whole theme of friendship throughout the book was wonderful! It really showcases that with girls, sometimes friendships aren't all that pretty. =)

The Four Agreements by don Miguel Ruiz - This one was really interesting to me because I got to learn about the Toltec religion but more importantly the four agreements that it discusses are so important. I think about them a lot and I know if I really followed them that I could live an even happier life.

Still Alice by Lisa Genova - This was a wonderful book about Alzheimer's disease and it's effect on not only those who suffer from it but also to their loved ones. This story really has changed how I treat those who do suffer from the disease.

Choosing Glory by Lili de Hoyos Anderson - This is another book that makes me think of my actions quite a bit and has made me want to be a better person.

The Ditchdigger's Daughters by Yvonne Thornton - This was an inspirational book of a family who made it through rough times.

Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach - This was a fascinating book and I learned so much about cadavers and what is done with our bodies after we die. Loved it!

The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey - Wonderful advice on how to manage your money better. Joe and I have implemented a lot of his ideas and it's helped so much!

1-2-3 Magic by Thomas Phelan - This is the method that Joe and I currently use to discipline Colton and it is working really well for us!

The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom - A terrific story of a concentration camp survivor that makes you want to have her attitude and just be a better person.

Colton and the Egg

2011-01-15T07:37:00.000-08:00

Every Wednesday this month at Thanksgiving Point they are doing story time and an activity at Farm Country. I decided to see if Colton has improved during public story times and take him. And the answer to that is no. Colton and another boy his age just ran around while the lady read a story about an egg and baby chick but he was really excited for the activity portion! The kids got to pick out an egg, write their name on it, and then place it in an incubator. On Feb 2 the eggs will hatch! Colton thought that this was so cool and keeps talking about the egg and "ink-bater" and how it will hatch into a baby chicken.

(Colton's egg is the light brown one)

Just a funny side story, I only buy brown eggs so that's all Colton's ever seen. When it was time to choose an egg there were 3 brown eggs and then tons of white eggs. He immediately took a brown egg and then just stared at the white eggs like, "what is wrong with those eggs!?"

Afterwards we went outside in the "pleasant" 25 degree weather and fed the chickens.

Colton is Two and a Half!

2011-01-10T13:31:00.000-08:00

Our little cutie butt is 2 1/2 years old as of yesterday! In one sense time is flying, but in other it's going pretty slow. It seems like he's been in our family forever and really it's only been a few years. He's a little pistol that keeps us on our toes all the time but is also fun, cuddly, happy boy with a really funny personality. We love him so much and we're happy he's part of our family!

LIKES

Colton loves helping out and can be really good at it, given the right task. He loves cleaning, which I hope stays with him forever, and especially loves sweeping and vacuuming.
His two passions in life are dinosaurs and anything transportation-related. He talks about these two things all the time, loves to play with them, and wants to visit them (at museums and such) every day. At night I can only read him dinosaur books and then he has to take those books to bed with him to keep near him. It's really cute.
He is starting to get more of an imagination and pretends to be either a baby or a puppy at least once every day. I think with all the baby talk and me babysitting friends/cousins babies is the main reason he likes pretending to be a baby. He never took a binky as a baby but will now put one his mouth and chew on it. He doesn't know you're supposed to suck on it. And he likes to eat in his old high chair that he really doesn't fit in anymore. Then all of the sudden he start crawling on all fours and licking everything and he's a puppy!
He's a great eater and still will eat more veggies than he will fruit. One funny thing about eating these things is that he has to eat them like an adult would. I can't cut up his apples, carrots, oranges, broccoli, etc. He loves fruit snacks and asks for them all day and he's also become a big chocolate fiend. Lately he's been loving salad and eating lettuce. Isn't that kinda weird for a 2 year old to like?
His favorite song to sing is Jingle Bells and thanks to his nursery leaders at church he's able to sing his ABCs, I Am a Child of God, Popcorn Popping, Head Shoulders Knees and Toes, B-I-N-G-O, and a couple of others I can't think of right now. I'm so grateful he's learning those songs there because he won't let me sing them to him at home unless it's when I'm putting him to bed. And when he's going to bed he only wants me to sing Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.....about 50 times. And sometimes he'll request it when he first wakes up in the morning because it's still dark outside. Other than that, he doesn't like me singing. Which is his loss because I know some great songs and have a pretty good voice. =)
Every morning he wants to watch "TB" under the "cubbers" with Mommy in the living room. This is great for me too because I just go back to sleep! His favorite shows are Team Umizoomi, Thomas the Train (the new ones), Chuggington, and Dinosaur Train. Occasionally he likes watching Dora, Diego, Mickey Mouse and Curious George. Team Umizoomi is his number one favorite and he actually knows a lot of his shapes and has gotten a lot better at counting (including counting backwards) because of the show.
He's still very social and loves other kids to play with. He especially loves going to den meetings with me because he gets to play with "the boys!" and tries to copy everything they do. He helps hold the flag for flag ceremony, do the cub scout salute during the pledge, and then do whatever activity they're doing. Last week we played kickball and he actually did surprisingly well at that game. I think we'll for sure be signing him up for soccer next year.

Colton is being a baby while wearing a Snuggie.

DISLIKES

Going to bed. This has been a struggle for us lately because he's a great manipulator and can get out of his bed. He's a clever little boy and knows what to say to us to make us stay in his room longer and he's also figured out how to pick the lock in his room. "Mommy, I feel sick! I'm throwing up!" or "Daddy, I want to watch football with you!" or "Gamma, save me!". He knows just what to say to each of us. We have to duct tape the light switches and put a lock on his door to keep him in and that's really done the trick. He never cries for more than 10 minutes and always put himself back in bed to go to sleep. I feel bad that we have to cage him into his room but we really did try every other option we could think of. He still takes a nap every day. There was a week in December when he didn't nap and I thought he was done with it, but he's back to napping for 2 hours every day. Yay!
He hates changing his clothes. This one I just can't figure out. It's takes 10 minutes of struggling to change his clothes and then once he's in them he's fine. This goes for his day clothes and pajamas.
Sitting in timeout. But that's a good thing (for us anyways). It's an effective punishment for Colton because he never wants to miss out on the fun. He's proving to be one of those little boys that has to test every boundary given to him. You can tell him not to do something until you're blue in the face but he's gonna do it anyways and see for himself if it really is dangerous or that you're going to punish him. Joe made a good point recently that with Colton we're going to have to clearly explain boundaries to him and then just let him go and be there to pick up the pieces, discipline, love him, etc. Hopefully as he matures he'll start to listen and trust us, but we'll see!
He really dislikes Family Home Evening. He does not want us saying a prayer, does not want us to sing a song, and then does not want us to do a lesson/activity unless it involves coloring something. It's kinda funny to us because he's willing to participate in mealtime prayers and bedtime prayers, but not FHE prayers. I have learned my lesson to have him coloring a picture of something we can talk to him about, but it's funny to watch him revolt when I try a new activity with him. We need to get the spirit of Jesus in that boy! =)

Colton picked the lock in his room during nap time and just walked out to the living and fell asleep in the ottoman.

Friday Randoms 1/7/11

2011-01-07T15:42:00.001-08:00

My life is so super boring these days, that's why I don't do this regularly anymore. Seriously, I've put myself on bed rest most days and I try to convince Colton that it's really fun to just watch TV all day.
My nausea is easing up, which helps a lot. But then we have this stupid inversion so I get mega headaches every day. I don't know which is worse. But I have been making an effort about every other day to leave the house for Colton's sake. So it is an improvement.
Joe and I met with a perinatal doctor last week to have a consult about my past blood clot and the effect it could have on my pregnancy. I received the news that I dreaded the most.....I have to start doing Lovenox shots at 16 weeks (which is in 3 weeks). Lovenox is a blood thinner and it's injected in your body through a shot IN YOUR STOMACH. I did it for a week after the blood clot and it hurt unbelievably bad. Not only does it kill to have a shot in your stomach but then the medicine stings really really bad. And it would always leave a huge bruise. I will have to do these shots once a day throughout the pregnancy and 6 weeks after the baby is born. I pretty much want to cry when I think about this, but as the doctor so eloquently put it, would I rather not do the shots and possibly get another blood clot which would result in a stroke or death, or just suck it up? So I'm sucking it up. But you'd better believe that I will remind my children of this sacrifice every time they're mean to me.
Colton's world is going to totally be turned upside down when this baby comes. He gets so much attention being an only child, the only grandchild on my family's side, and the only grandchild living in the state for his other grandparents. I have been talking to him every day about how there's a baby in my tummy and that he's going to be a big brother and be really nice to the baby. He loves babies so he gets excited when I talk about this and says "nice baby!" but he really has no clue. He might not get it until the baby is actually here, but I might as well try and prep him!
Really, that is my life. If you ever want to talk to a living TV Guide, you could talk to me. I'll let you know what shows come on when and if they're good or not. Oh, I've been craving Asian food lately and sugary foods don't sound good to me at all. Weird, huh?

Snow Fun!

2011-01-03T13:44:00.000-08:00

I've yet to upload Christmas videos and pictures from the camcorder, I did recently get some pictures of Colton and what he's been up to lately.

Colton really is a good helper and will gladly be put to work. One job that he really loves is helping with snow removal.

P.S. These pics are backwards because I'm using Internet Explorer instead of Firefox and it's way harder for me to do pictures.

The reward of helping Daddy remove the snow is sledding!

This was his reaction to me telling him that he can't ride his new bike on the snow.

He finds something new to use in snow removal every time and this time it was his new tractor shovel.

I just love his snow hat this year.

Christmas Lights

2010-12-22T18:25:00.000-08:00

We FINALLY did a Christmas activity as a family tonight! I was feeling pretty decent so we decided to head over to Thanksgiving Point and see their light show that you drive through. We picked up some yummy sandwiches from Kneaders and ate as we drove around. Colton loved pointing everything out, especially the candy canes and Santa. Those are his favorites.

This is the end result of giving a 2-year a sandwich, sugar cookie and chocolate milk with no supervision. Very messy!!

Friday Randoms 12/17/10

2010-12-17T08:23:00.000-08:00

I think I skipped doing this last week, but not much is happening around here unless you want to know the amount of TV watching that is happening daily and the details of my puke. =)
Colton had a huge breakthrough yesterday....he pooped on the toilet!! I'm not really focusing on potty training at all right now and don't plan on it until I feel less pukey, so I'm happy that he's doing all this on his own. Big boy Colton!!
Colton's also climbing out of his crib, a lot. I really wanted to wait until he turned three to move him to a bed, but it's looking like it will be happening sooner. He's also wanting me to rock him to sleep, which is very out of the ordinary. Is that normal for a toddler to regress with his sleep habits?
I still haven't done a thing for Christmas, except buy presents for extended family. Nothing is wrapped, sent off, etc. I don't even have a tree up....it's pretty lame around here! But luckily Colton doesn't know any different so he's not feeling like a deprived child.

MIA

2010-12-14T15:05:00.000-08:00

Why I've been MIA lately. And will be for awhile....
Yes, I'm super pukey just like I was with Colton. Although I must say that it's MUCH better to be pukey at home than at work every day. And I'm so grateful for wonderful neighbors, friends, and family who entertain Colton for me. If it weren't for them, he'd be laying in bed with me watching 12 hours of cartoons and movies every day.

We are so blessed and excited for the new addition!! Baby #2 is due right around Colton's birthday, so they'll be almost exactly 3 years apart (which is nice for my sanity). It took us awhile to get pregnant and I had a miscarriage this spring, so we're happy that things are working out better this time around.

So needless to say, I'm not going to be blogging a ton. I can't sit at the computer for too long before feeling really sick. Oh, and I also have no energy to do Christmas cards, neighbor gifts, or pretty much anything else but know that I love you and am thinking of you!!

Book Review - Decision Points

2010-12-06T19:46:00.000-08:00

Summary: Decision Points is the extraordinary memoir of America’s 43rd president. Shattering the conventions of political autobiography, George W. Bush offers a strikingly candid journey through the defining decisions of his life.

In gripping, never-before-heard detail, President Bush brings readers inside the Texas Governor’s Mansion on the night of the hotly contested 2000 election; aboard Air Force One on 9/11, in the hours after America’s most devastating attack since Pearl Harbor; at the head of the table in the Situation Room in the moments before launching the war in Iraq; and behind the Oval Office desk for his historic and controversial decisions on the financial crisis, Hurricane Katrina, Afghanistan, Iran, and other issues that have shaped the first decade of the 21st century.

President Bush writes honestly and directly about his flaws and mistakes, as well as his accomplishments reforming education, treating HIV/AIDS in Africa, and safeguarding the country amid chilling warnings of additional terrorist attacks. He also offers intimate new details on his decision to quit drinking, discovery of faith, and relationship with his family.

My Thoughts: Because I love reading autobiographies/biographies and was highly interested in what President Bush had to say about his time in office, I ended up really like this book. It gave me a whole new view on Bush as a person, why he made certain decisions, and learned about positive things he did while he was in office that I had never heard about before. The media plays such a huge part in defining someone that it's nice to let them have a say and learn why certain things were done and said. I wish that every President would write a book like this after their term so we can understand things better. I would recommend this book to people who like autobiographies, who are President Bush fans, or would like to know why he made some of the decisions he made.

Friday Randoms 12/3/10

2010-12-03T15:16:00.000-08:00

My computer is finally fixed! Hallelujah!!! So much to catch up on.....
Last week Colton got a skull fracture, which I mentioned before. Here are the details - he was sitting on a bar stool in the kitchen and fell off onto the tile floor. I hurried and picked him up and rocked him in a chair for about 30 minutes and he was acting a little out of it. He began throwing up which I know means you have a concussion so I took him straight to the ER. He got a CAT scan and there's a small fracture on the back of his head. The doctors observed him for 4 hours and then released us. Two hours after getting home he started throwing up bad again. So we call that ER and they told us to take him to Primary Children's Hospital for a specialist to check him out. We were there for 2 hours and they ran some neurological tests and was fine. The concussion was making him throw up a lot. So when we finally got home around 4am, we all slept in until 10am and then just took it easy. We've had a lot of movie days around here!! It takes about a month for skull fractures to heal and we're pretty much supposed to not let him rough house and that's all. Sounds simple, right?
Over Thanksgiving we got sick. I started throwing up, then Joe, and then eventually my mom. Needless to say, there was no Black Friday shopping. But on an up note, we didn't overeat and gain weight! The opposite happened.
Joe's car died Monday night on I15 during rush hour. And it was about 2 degrees outside. He finally got it back Wednesday after a belt needed to be replaced. But that pretty much went our Christmas budget! Between Colton's two ER visits, fixing my computer, and fixing Joe's car, we used up all our Christmas money. It's ok though, we'll just make homemade gifts and focus more on the true meaning of Christmas!
Today Colton got to go on a train ride at the mall for going pee pee on the potty 12 times and then he met Santa for his first time. He would only get on his lap if I sat next to Santa. But then Colton warmed up a bit and gave Santa a hug as well as told him all about his train ride. His favorite part of this experience was the candy cane at the end. None of the pictures they took were cute at all, so no Santa pics this year!

Book Review - 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

2010-12-02T11:38:00.000-08:00

Summary: In The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, author Stephen R. Covey presents a holistic, integrated, principle-centered approach for solving personal and professional problems. With penetrating insights and pointed anecdotes, Covey reveals a step-by-step pathway for living with fairness, integrity, service, and human dignity -- principles that give us the security to adapt to change and the wisdom and power to take advantage of the opportunities that change creates.

My Thoughts: I've wanted to read this book for a long time and I'm kinda surprised I never had to in any business class I took. I've actually even been to the Covey house (beautiful!!) because I went to a party his son threw when I was in college. And my mom had a crush on Stephen when he was her professor. So lots of connections, but never got around to reading the book. I really enjoyed it and felt that there are great principles in there that everyone either needs to learn or just remember on a regular basis. The principles are be proactive, begin with the end in mind, put first things first, think win/win, seek first to understand and then to be understood, synergize, and sharpen the saw. I didn't think any of these were brand new concepts but they were all great reminders of how to be a better person..

Here are some quotes that I highlighted (via Kindle):

"Our character, basically is a composite of our habits. Habits are powerful factors in our lives. Because they are consistent, often unconscious patterns, they constantly, daily, express our character and produce our effectiveness....or ineffectiveness."
"We are not our feelings. We are not our moods. We are not even our thoughts."
"Reactive people are often affected by their physical environment. If the weather is good, they feel good. If it isn't, it affects their attitude and performance. Proactive people can carry their own weather with them. Whether is rains or shines makes no difference to them. They are value drive."
"Reactive people are also affected by their social environment. When people treat them well, they feel well; when people don't, the become defensive or protective. Reactive people build their emotional lives around the behavior of others, empowering their weaknesses of other people to control them."
"If feelings control our actions, it is because we have abdicated our responsibility and empowered them to do so. Proactive people subordinate feelings to values."
"The power to make and keep commitments to ourselves is the essence of developing the basic habits of effectiveness. Knowledge, skill and desire are all well within our control."
"To begin with the end in mind means to approach my role as a parent with my values and directions clear. It also means to begin each day with those values firmly in mind. Then as the challenges come, I can make my decisions based on those values. I can act with integrity. I don't have to react to the emotion, the circumstance. I can be truly proactive, value driven, because my values are clear."
"In Viktor Frankl's words, 'Everyone has his own specific vocation or mission in life....Therein he cannot be replaced, nor can his life be repeated. Thus, everyone's task is unique as is his specific opportunity to implement it."
"The most important ingredient we put into any relationship is not what we say or what we do, but what we are."
"When parents see their children's problems as opportunities to build the relationship instead of as a negative, burdensome irritations, it totally changes the nature of the parent-child interaction. Parents become more willing, even excited, about deeply understanding and helping their children. Their paradigm is, 'Here is a great opportunity for me to really help my child and to invest in our relationship.'"
"First, see the problem from the other point of view. Really seek to understand and to give expression to the needs and concerns of the other party as well as or better than they can themselves."
"Seek first to understand, then to be understood. This principle is the key to effective interpersonal communication."
"Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply. They're either speaking or preparing to speak."
"The person who doesn't read is no better off than the person who can't read."
"Goethe taught, 'Treat a man as he is and he will remain as he is. Treat a man as he can and should be and he will become as he can and should be.'"

Not Dead...

2010-11-28T20:32:00.000-08:00

My computer crashed and is still dead, Colton got a skull fracture and I'm supposed to keep him "calm with no rough housing" for a full week, and Joe and I have been throwing up the past few days. But I'm not dead.

Friday Randoms 11/19/10

2010-11-19T18:19:00.000-08:00

I'm so excited that next week is Thanksgiving! Every year my parents are in charge of the turkey and desserts and I make all the side dishes. I plan on making (with the help of my sister, Jill) mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, green bean casserole, Rhodes rolls with butter and parmesan cheese on top, sourdough bread stuffing, sauteed mushrooms and glazed carrots. I love all the cooking that Thanksgiving entails!!
Colton has been such a good boy this week. For the first time ever, he is putting forth an effort to please me. He's never done that before! He's only had to sit in time out about 5 times this week, when it's usually 5 times a day. He also is starting to be a little more gentle with other kids. Even his nursery leaders at church noticed! So this week has been quite pleasant and we've all been in great moods.
Last weekend I decided that I was done eating so many sweets. You know it's bad when you've hit that wall. So I've decided from now on that I'm only eat sweets on the weekend - Saturday and Sunday. I was able to stick with it all week except for bookclub. I couldn't be rude to the hostess and not sample her delicious desserts! =)
So I've officially decided what weather condition I can't stand the most. Wind. It has been out-of-control windy this week. I went running the other night and literally felt like I was running place. Then one time I was running downhill and a huge gust got me from behind and I stumbled forward and almost fell. It's just craziness and I can't stand it. Plus it's making my allergies just awful! Whine, whine, whine.
Colton has learned his first Christmas carol - Jingle Bells. We sing it over and over again as we drive around and it's so cute to hear him sing it and which words he picks out to emphasize. I really need to start recording him doing these things.
I've been racking my brain the past few days about neighbor gifts for Christmas. What are y'all doing this year?

Friends and Curious George

2010-11-18T14:33:00.001-08:00

We are very fortunate to live in a wonderful neighbor with such great friends....for both myself and for Colton! We have play dates with friends every week and get to do lots of fun stuff together. And I get to have sanity and hang out with awesome people my own age instead of a 2-year old all day. =)

Today a bunch of got together to go to the library and see a puppet show (which Colton only lasted about 10 minutes) and then Curious George came to visit all the kids. Colton has no clue who Curious George is but he loves monkeys, so he was happy! We ended that play date at our favorite lunch spot, Chick-fil-a. YUM!

Colton is giving George a hug.

This was the best group picture I could get. And four of the kids are with their moms because George is quite large, thus he was a little scary.

Snowbird

2010-11-14T08:41:00.000-08:00

A week ago Saturday we took a family trip to nearby Snowbird Resort with the plan to do the Alpine Slide and the Aerial Tram. The slides were already taken down to get ready for the ski season so we just did the tram. It was a lot of fun and a lot of cold! At the top of the mountain it was 40 degrees, which wasn't bad, but the wind was blowing pretty hard and that made it a lot colder.
It's beautiful up there, huh? On the way down the tram I got a phone call that a family member was being rushed to the ER for a possible heart attack. So Joe dropped me off at the ER and I hung out with that family member for about 3 hours. It turned out to be a viral infection in her lungs, so we were very happy it wasn't anything worse! But while we were there a man was brought in across the hall who had a for real heart attack and he didn't make it. We watched the whole thing - him being rushed in, overhearing the nurses in the hall say he wouldn't make it, watch the family turn off the machines that were keeping him alive, the police officers and nurses console the wife and daughter, etc. It was horrible!! I wouldn't wish that scenario upon anyone.

Then about 10 minutes after I came home from all that, Colton started crying really hard and telling us that his ear hurt. So we get back in the car and go back to the same hospital because they have a PediaCare clinic. He did have an ear infection (first one ever) and it was very handy that Colton could specifically tell us what was wrong with him. Needless to say, it was a long and eventful day.

Book Review - Homeland

2010-11-13T10:41:00.000-08:00

Summary: As brother turns against brother in the bloodbath of the Civil War, two young women sacrifice everything but their friendship. Susanna Ashford is the Southerner, living on a plantation surrounded by scarred and blood-soaked battlefields. Cora Poole is the Northerner, on an isolated Maine island, her beloved husband fighting for the Confederacy. Through the letters the two women exchange, they speak of the ordeal of a familiar world torn apart by tragedy. And yet their unique friendship will help mend the fabric of a ravaged nation.

The two women write about books and art, about loss and longing, about their future and the future of their country. About love. About being a woman in nineteenth-century America. About the triumphant resilience of the human spirit.

My Thoughts: I enjoyed this book and the different perspectives of women during the Civil War. I like that it showed women both passionate and un-passionate about the war/politics, women supporting both sides, and just basic survival during the war. The book is the collection of letters between the two women so it's both interesting and a little confusing at times because of this. Overall, it's a good book. If you enjoy historical fictions based on the Civil War, you'll enjoy this one.

Friday Randoms 11/12/10

2010-11-12T14:50:00.001-08:00

This week was pretty boring. Colton and I only left the house a few times and just mainly hung around the house. One of our outings was to our second home - the Dinosaur Museum at Thanksgiving Point. We go there at least once a week and it's all Colton talks about every day. Today we went to the zoo and when we came back he told his grandparents that he went to the dinosaur museum and just kept talking about that. Can we say obsessed?
Some conversations that happen at least once a day with Colton -

Colton: "Mommy! I made a mess!"
Me: "Oh really? Are you going to clean it up?"
Colton: "No, Mommy is!" (WRONG!)

Colton: "Mommy, I didn't do it!"
Me: "What didn't you do?"
Colton: "I'm sorry."
Me: "What did you do?"
Colton runs away and I have no idea what he's talking about. But it can't be good, right?

I've been playing Christmas music a lot this week and I'm getting really excited to do Christmas activities with Colton. He can recognize Santa and he loves snowmen, so I think he'll understand Christmas even more this year. I also bought a really cool 2-person sled at Costco the other day so I can't wait to take him sledding! Last year he wasn't a fan but I think he'll like it this year.
If you're bored and need a good laugh, check out the Hyperbole and a Half blog. It's more than entertaining. Some especially goods reads are The Alot Is Better Than You At Everything, The God of Cake, and The Party.

Christmas Ideas

2010-11-09T16:39:00.000-08:00

I really enjoyed making gifts for Colton last year and I wanted to make more this year. I really don't want to buy Colton anything for Christmas this year, except for maybe some books. He has plenty of toys and he doesn't know that you're supposed to ask for things for Christmas. So I'm going to keep Christmas simple for as long as I can!

I've been thinking of different projects I can make for Colton and this is the list I've compiled so far. Realistically I probably won't get to all of them, so we'll see which ones actually get done! If you have any other ideas, please send them my way!!

Superhero Cape - I want to do reversible capes and have different themes like fireman, dinosaurs, construction vehicles, cars/trucks, etc. Pretty much anything "boy".

Take-Along Car Holder and Track - I love this one. This is a for sure thing I'm going to make. It would be perfect to take to church and restaurants!

Play Kitchen - I love that this is made out of a book case because you can get those pretty cheap at second-hand stores. Colton loves to pretend to cook, so I think he'd like this!

Matching Game - I wanted to do something like this for Colton last year and never got around to doing it. I think it's a great way for him to remember relatives he doesn't get to see regularly. I could also make a matching game for him of things he loves and personalize it just for him.

Dinosaur Play Mat - This looks really easy and would be great to take to church and restaurants too. Plus, you could create other "worlds" for toys too. How easy would it be to make a castle for a princess (for girls), or a farm for animals, or train track for trains?

That's all I've thought about so far. I'd love any ideas you have found...even if it's for girls! I could adapt. =)

P.S. I found this cute site that makes books and you can insert a family member's picture in to be the main character of a story. I made a book called My SuperDad with Joe's face in it to give to Colton. I can't wait to see how it turns out!

Book Review - Mitten Strings for God

2010-11-07T19:27:00.000-08:00

Summary: In an age when "keeping up with the Joneses" refers not only to material riches but also to a whirlwind of activities, author Katrina Kenison humbly asks, "Just whose standards am I living by, anyway?" Kenison, mother of two sons and former annual editor of The Best American Short Stories anthology since 1990, understands the hectic agendas, short tempers, and full-time careers today's families endure. But she has also learned to limit the chaos. Kenison weaves together personal stories and wisdom from such philosophers as Thoreau and Anne Morrow Lindbergh; the graceful resulting tapestry shows how peace and simplicity can be savored in a world hell-bent on pushing people to accomplish more, own more, and do it all as quickly as possible.

My Thoughts: LOVED this book! If I had a lot of money I'd buy a copy of this for every mom I knew and give one to them. This book really has inspired me to become a better mom and has made me rethink how we are spending our time every day. I got this from the library but plan on buying it to re-read often. Please read this one!!

Friday Randoms 11/05/10

2010-11-05T07:20:00.000-07:00

I had a strange wildlife encounter last night. I was walking to someone's house about halfway down the street when I saw three deer eating some bushes in the neighbors yard. That's not all that unusual, but what happened next was. They just stood there staring at me as I walked by and the next thing I heard were their hooves on the sidewalk. They were following me! I couldn't figure out if maybe I was some sort of Dr. Dolittle where animals are just drawn to me or they were quite possibly going to attack me any second. I thought the latter was more likely so I started walking faster and getting a little panicky. After following me for the length of two house they turned and crossed the street. But isn't that weird that deer would follow me? They're usually so scared of people.
We were supposed to go on a vacation today (for the next 4 days) but had to cancel it because Joe has a sinus infection and already missed a couple days of work this week. I'm kinda bummed about it because I had been looking forward to it for quite awhile. We were going to go to Page, AZ and see the Balloon Festival at Lake Powell and spend a couple of days on the lake and then a couple of days in St. George. I needed a vacation. I'm a traveler at heart and if I had things my way we'd go on a vacation (or staycation) once a month. Joe is not a vacationer, so it complicates things.
Colton is starting to get what friends are and remembering his friends' names. It is so cute!! Our neighborhood has lots of kids his age plus I have many friends/cousins with kids his age so he has no shortage of friends. How he pronounces their names and how kids pronounce his name (Co-tun) is just adorable. I love that he's social and gets excited to play with them. His next step is to be better about sharing!
Speaking of playing with kids, Colton plays really rough. I know it's not right and I'm trying my hardest to make him more gentle but he also is a 2-year old, a boy, and hasn't learned boundaries and/or levels of roughness with various aged children. My point to all this is that I've had many moms (strangers) come and inform me of the roughness of my child and I've had women do it in a bratty, rude way and also in a nice, understanding way. For all the parents reading, please talk to other moms in a nice, understanding way! I get that you're a "mama bear" and want to protect your child but most of the time with rough kids, their moms either don't know it's happening or they are trying to be proactive. Either way they don't deserve to be told in a snotty, mean way what they're kid is doing. I'm just amazed at how rude some women can get when they see me trying to do something about Colton - have him apologize to kids, put him in time-out, constantly tell him not to teach people, etc. It's not as if I don't care and I'm just letting him run amok. Remember the golden rule people and also remember that your kids are watching you and you should show them how to be kind to people!!
I got a Kindle for my birthday last weekend and I'm in love! If you love to read definitely look into this gadget! Unless you have an iPad, then it's really not all that cool. =)