Facebook Updates

I'm just too far behind to keep up so I just copied and pasted a few of the highlights from Facebook.  Hopefully I'll have time to add to the better ones.

I'm grateful that when I checked on my sweet sick baby after he went to bed that he has a Book of Mormon, hymn book and a story book about Nephi in bed with him. How blessed I am to have him as a daily reminder of what's important.

 

The high school was in lock down today. I handled it fairly well. I am grateful for the assortment of official cell phone numbers I have and that Zach heeded my advice "not to do anything stupid" and that Bailey was off campus. 

There was a report of a couple of men with guns in the apartment complex by the school so it was put in lock down. The school sent out messages just stating it was a lock down. My friend whom I was with had a text from her daughter saying, "there is a man with a gun we are hiding in the closet" so of course we freaked out and took off for the school. I knew we couldn't get in but I wanted to be closer if my kids needed me. Fortunately I have lots of cell phone numbers of people who know things and was told it was nothing. Nothing makes your heart stop like that kind of a phone call!

Bailey told Jacob he was being annoying and he just smiled and said, "my specialty"

Jacobs ears are red (he does that when he's hot) and he said, "oh mom...its a bacteria..a special kind of bacteria that only I can see...its treated with candy"

 

Kaitlyn must not weigh enough to make the automatic doors at Smiths open...Too bad she wasn't looking to notice HA HA HA HA

While practicing for his spelling test Jacob said, "I know how to spell it I just don't which letters to use " :)

A Bailey quote ," I can't sing the high notes so I just make them up"...that explains it.

In an attempt to make it on time to Jacobs last soccer game Zach rode his bike to the rec center, ran over glass and had both tires explode on him. He ditched the bike on the side of the road and ran the rest of the way. That is dedication!

Things you DON'T want to hear from Zach when you come home..."I taught Jacob how to put out a fire".

‎"If you see a paper with a bunch of scribbling lines all over that I need it...its my homework"....Jacob.

Dear neighbors, I'm sorry I forgot to close my blinds before playing Just Dance...it wont happen again

Zach was "reassigned" from his TA position at school for reenacting the final scene from King Kong with paper airplanes....sigh

The principal nicknamed Kaitlyn "Miller the Killer". Every time he calls her that she stands at least two inches taller.

Jacob just suggested I need "Life Alert"....grrr

Today is the last day of summer but don't worry...I plan on hanging around.

It has come to my attention that people don't know my husband. It was a topic of conversation tonight....so...if you have had a conversation with him let me know..I'm beginning to wonder if I just imagine he is here :)

Getting ready to go play some church ball. Hopefully someone brings a first aid kit and a defibrilator

Somebody just had a little melt down because all the "good" cereal was gone....I then realized I'm the only one home.

Perhaps making homemade helicopters using rope, carabiners, hockey sticks and blankets ISN'T the best idea.

Kaitlyn just brought me my bar cookie and said, "small and delicate like my mommy"...I think she was trying to get more for herself! :)

 

Now that Jacob can clip his own toe nails I am afraid I"m useless.

Zach to big tattooed dude on trax......(head nod)....so youve been in prison too.? The guy had been fyi but gave zach all the reasonx to stay clean :)

Pretty sure its the last place I'd expect to find Zach but he's at the Willie Nelson Concert.

Toothpaste and neosporin are not interchangeable

Learned the hard way why people put their pants on one leg at a time...that's going to leave a mark.

Nylons after an all You can eat lunch? Not a good idea...I think My left eyeball Just popped out

Jacob: Hey mom, for some reason the bathroom smells like rotten eggs...maybe I shouldn't eat eggs in the morning and maybe I should brush my teeth downstairs....later in the morning I said, "what do you need to remember today" (meaning lunch box) and he said, "never trust a fart"..sigh.

Favorite Jacob quote from the first day, "kids aren't happy they're serving 1% milk, they like 2% but they all make me throw up 100%

As I dropped Jacob off he said, "Mom, you only have a 12 pack of Dr Pepper left...are you going to be ok?" :)

The server at olive garden just asked if its ok for Kaitlyn to have a big cup...ha ha

Zach about a former school, "The kept saying 'be a leader' and the minute I get a group of followers they called it a gang" Ha HA

Jacob discovered the doorbell ringtone on a phone and keeps do

Took Jacob to Herriman Beach tonight and he was so excited to see they had installed "boobies" to help keep him safe :)

orbell ditching Kaitlyns room. He's so proud

Bailey hasn't stopped talking in 12 hours. I turned on the radio in the car only to have her turn it off and say, "I enjoy the silence" ;)

Teaching Bailey to sew is somewhat like living in an I Love Lucy episode. Funny if you're watching on tv....not so funny in real life.

 

You should check yourself before you blame other people" Jacob Miller..so true.

When is the community garden NOT pretty..... when your keys are somewhere in the weeds!!!!

Watched Soul Surfer with the kids and right at the dramatic moment that the girl loses her arm Jacob says, "oh no...how will she text?!" :)

Playing a game with Jacob and he says "ah ha I see a flea in your plan" he he pesky fleas :)

I never tire of watching my husband fall in a lake.I guess the answer to the question on whether or not I can fix the broken cord would be a big fat NO! The fire shot a good 2 feet but the shock was by far worse.

 

Good thing I bought Jacob new scissors...apparently his "first grade scissors" are too "old fashioned" for second grade.

Reason NOT to recycle containers....I just put quinoa on my ice cream instead of peanuts :(

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am His Daughter

Bailey and Kaitlyn just had their Young Women in Excellence Program and I was so proud of both of them.  Kaitlyn was asked to speak on Good Works and she received her first value award for Knowledge.  She met with one of my friends who is a photographer who gave her some great tips. Bailey won her Honor Bee.  She completed her Personal Progress as a Beehive so she had to do 40 hours of service and read the Book of Mormon again in order to complete it. This is one of their favorite songs so I put it together with some of their pictures for the year.

Never a Dull Moment

Zach who has been spending part of his day as an assistant in the office.  Today he was asked to transfer classes after reenacting the final scene from King Kong while standing on the table...sigh.

First Day of School

The day is starting earlier and earlier around here. Zach and Bailey have early morning seminary so that they can take their classes over at the college so we are up before the sun (well...some of us). I woke Zach up an hour before he needed to leave.  Ten minutes before we ran out the door we discovered him still sleeping.  I've never seen someone shower that quickly.  Bailey was very excited for her vet class.  Unfortunately for me she has to deal with 18 foot boa's and I spent the day trying not to think about it.  Kaitlyn had a fabulous day of Junior High. The smile on her face was priceless.  Jacob did great all by himself at his own school.  He was thrilled to see his friends again.

I cleaned the kitchen at about 9:30.  At 2:45 it still looked the same. I'm not sure that has ever happened in my house before so I had to capture the moment on camera :)

When Life Gives You Celery...make...Flowers

Today should have been a magical day.  Something that I've been dreaming of for about a year now happened.  I was so excited and as with so many things that we plan for and hope for it didn't go as planned. Arguments ensued and the atmosphere in the home was less than ideal.  I take EVERYTHING personal and so of course the morning events meant that everything is bad and ugly and nothing would ever be "right" again. I am the first person to point out and acknowlege God's hand in the every day happenings around here and despite the fact that I KNOW that he has he been here every step of the way I felt somewhat forgotten.   There was no beauty to be seen anywhere around me and with nothing but despair I made my way to the kitchen to make dinner.  I grabbed the celery and started hacking at it forgetting about the inner leaves and the dirt on the bottom and just took all of my frustration out on the poor vegetable.  I got down to the base and prepared to discard it in the trash with great flourish when I noticed what had been hidden beneath...

In all the years of cutting celery I have NEVER known that it could it be created into something beautiful.  It was a good reminder that even though we can not always see the beauty in something around us that it does exist...that HE does exist.  My object lesson quickly turned into a "hey everybody...come and look" moment. The atmosphere in the home changed and I'm not ashamed to say that tears fell. Never forget to see the beauty in the unexpected places and NEVER forget to see the miracles that happen every day.  Don't judge something or someone on their dirty exterior, there is beauty in everyone. 

It is Great to be Eight

 

Jacob's baptism was fabulous.  I was so worried about him turning 8 but it turns out it was for nothing..he's just as adorable as he was at 7.  Today while watching Soul Surfer we got right to the dramatic part when the girl loses her arm and he says, "oh no..how will she text".  While playing a game I made a poor move just to speed the game up and he says, "ah ha...I see a "flea" in your plan"..oh how I love that boy.

Summer in a Nut Shell

It is August....wow...when did that happen.  It has been a crazy and fun summer and here are the bullet points.

Shad and Sandra came to visit the first part of June and our days were full of fun.  We went to Antelope Island and were able to convince the ranger to let us passed the gate and were able to get within feet of the buffalo.  I'm not sure what I was thinking, I woke up the other day and realized exactly what that meant..buffalo are not tame and they're a tad bit bigger than your average animal.

 Animals tend to poop when I'm around.  I think I'm a very relaxing person.  While looking around the barn we saw what we assumed was a dead animal.  The lighting was off and I didn't want to get very close but the big heap of something started moving and suddenly little quills started to show and we realize that this was the biggest porcupine ever to exist.  We sat and watched him for a while as he stretched and sat up on his hind legs..we would have taken him home if we thought we could sneak him past the HOA.

The girls thought this little wind tunnel at the local mall was fun, I was just glad they spent their own money on it.

Gardner Village is always a favorite.

We discovered the Daybreak park and Jacob thinks that he is Spiderman. Bailey, as always looks lovely.
 

Kaitlyn is a little monkey.

Zach hasn't been around much this summer.  He has a new job working at Smiths and it keeps him pretty busy.  The only time I seem to see him is when we pass in front of the microwave.  I love going into Smiths and seeing him him working.  The customers and the management seem to enjoy his sarcasm.

My angel turned 8.....EIGHT!  I had a few crying fits and I'm sure more will come as he is baptized this weekend.  He gets more imaginative and more darling every day.  For his birthday he got a bunch of squirt guns so he could soak the neighbor kids.  One of our teenage neighbors was complaining that he was dehydrated.  Jacob walked up to him holding a giant water balloon and said with great swagger "so, Ezra, I hear you're dehydrated" and threw the balloon right at him.

Kaitlyn was hit by an ariel firework on July 4th while at a neighborhood party.  She had a horrible burn but somehow despite her pants catching on fire it was only her hand to get the worst of it.  She developed a staph infection (of course) and missed out on a lot of summer play time but is healing up beautifully.

Oh so cute!

We had MAJOR snake issues this year.  They deserve a post all of their own.

We hosted a group of students from China.  It was a great experience and even though they've been gone for a couple of weeks I'm still trying to recover. 

My little Kaitlyn who will be 12 this month is such a beauty.

I love his smile.  He is the happiest kid I've ever met. 

Building Walls?

I have been doing some soul searching this week.  It is probably because I have the plague and have been convinced on more than one occasion that I was all but done for. (Kaitlyn says I'm a big baby and then in great detail gave me the symptoms of the plague and why I don't have it).  I have been thinking about social media AKA Facebook, and how it has made a difference in my life.  I love that I have been able to connect with old friends and find out what new friends are doing at the touch of a button.  I have thought that in some way this was my way really being connected to people.  I have realized, however, that the communication is not genuine, not real and not all that I think it is.  I am pretty open and share with people what is on my mind, in fact, maybe a little too much BUT that isn't always a good thing :)  I was telling one of my friends the other day that I felt she was building up walls to see who was willing to tear them down....I think that is where I am.  I am not done with Facebook...it is an invaluable tool, but I think I am going to be a bit more selective with who I am communicating and how.  I want genuine real relationships.

World Tragedy

I was watching the news of the horrific earthquake in Japan this week.  There were houses washed away, cars destroyed, lives forever changed.  Jacob looked at the images and said, "they're ok mom, they have food storage".  I wanted to explain to him that food storage probably doesn't help them much when they're houses are washed away but the faith in his little eyes was too strong.  I simply said, "yes Jacob, they'll be blessed".  I pray they are.

One YEAR!!!!

We have had Waffles for one year this month.  I don't love dogs.  I like the idea of dogs and have always felt that every child should grow up with one.  I have tried big dogs, little dogs, medium sized dogs and I had just about decided that I was not meant to have one.  I had this nagging feeling that I had to try one more time.  Zach convinced the shelter to let us "borrow" dogs over night and see what we thought of different ones but I didn't like any of them.  I did a lot of driving back and forth to the Humane Society looking.  On a whim I checked out a dog that was at one of the local shelters.  She wasn't at all what I was looking for but for some reason I just had to meet her.  I took Jacob with me because if  dog doesn't like Jacob then it was a big NO.  This dog loved Jacob immediately.  She was well trained, thanks to the animal control officers who saw her potential and worked with her.  They let her roam the shelter and had her very well socialized.  I decided to give her a chance. I took her to several different vets offices trying to figure out what kind of mix she is.  Each one came up with "lab mix"  each vet had a different breed they thought she was mixed with.   It took some work getting her trained to find the door to go outside.  It was worth it.  She is my favorite dog ever and I love that she keeps an eye on my babies when they're playing and that she eagerly answers the door with me.  People ask about her name....Waffles. I honestly didn't think we'd end up trying her out for more than over night so when we thought about names I just threw out the name of something I had eaten that morning.  Thankfully, it fits her personality. 

Poor Jacob

Jacob had a rough week.  I received a phone call this week from my sweet baby who was in tears.  The only words I was able to make out were ,"bleeding" and "mom".  I very calmly asked him to talk to the nearest grown up, all while frantically trying to decide if he'd be humiliated if I showed up in my pj's or if it was an urgent enough matter that no one would notice.  I went with the pj top and a pair of jeans I pulled on as  I ran out the door.  My baby had cut his finger with scissors during class and the office was unable to stop the bleeding (or my tears).  I was at the school within about 30 seconds (they're always impressed with how quickly I can get there when my kids need me).  His sweet little lips were shaped in the saddest of frowns and tiny little drops of tears were on his cheeks.  After jumping the counter in the office to get to him I assessed his wound (I am CERT trained after all) and decided that if there were enough skin left he could use a stitch or two but I decided to butterfly it at home. 

Today while trying to walk with his eyes closed to get his school gear he ran into the banister and cut/bruised his cheek.  As we were assessing the wound again (boy CERT comes in  handy) he said, "I'm beginning to see a flaw in my plan".  How cute is that?  Between his injuries and Bailey's leg we may not be looking great in our pictures next week.

Giveaway

One of my talented friends that I've known from high school has a great giveaway on her blog.  Check it out!giveaway

We all make mistakes

Zachary came to tell me that Jacob is the most positive person he's met.  Apparently they were having a conversation about mistakes and Jacob said, "Zach, I'm going to make mistakes in my life, but I'm not going to feel bad about them now, I'll wait until I make the mistakes.  But don't worry, I'll be much older when it happens and I will know how to repent".

shoes

I have a thing for RED...it makes me happy.    I ruined my favorite red shoes in the garden last year (I know...why in the world did I wear them in the garden) so today I went in search of the perfect pair.  Sadly, I didn't find the red high heels I was searching for and on the way into Kohls my favorite red purse broke!!!  It was so so very sad but I found one for 75% off and I had a coupon for 15% off of that so it was ALMOST free. I found a pair of Naturalizers on sale for $40 and though that is about four times the amount I like to spend on shoes (my mother taught me that shoes were the most important investment and to always buy quality but I was never a very good listener). Bailey made me buy them but when I came home I was convinced I would have to take them back because they were excessive so I spit on them.  Yep....I SPIT on my shoe so I wouldn't have to take them back.  They are now safely on my feet and I may sleep in them.  Hooray for red shoes!

I'm going to whine for a bit so feel free to skip this if you're tired of people complaining about things.  I was watching the news with Kaitlyn the other day and they talked about the extreme likelihood of food going up in price again over the next little bit.  I shouldn't be shocked, after all, gas is going through the roof too.  In fact, everything is going up except for our paycheck and I'm really, really tired of it.  Kaitlyn was panicked that people will go hungry (not in our house) and she wants to find a way to make a difference.  It is really hard to look at her with her little altruistic dreams and tell her that there isn't much to do.  I want my kids to be happy, carefree and not have to worry about horrible things going on around them.  I can turn off the news, cancel cable and give her a pair of rose colored glasses but beyond that I'm not sure how to ensure that my kids have a childhood.

I Have Issues....Shocker!

I have issues.....I know....you're shocked....but the first step to fixing my problem is to admit I have one...right?  I am an extremely unorganized person.  If something doesn't change I'm going to be on an episode of Hoarders.  Ok, not really, I'm not THAT bad but I do have piles of stuff everywhere and can't close the drawers to my dresser.  I have a beautiful craft room that I can't use because there are too many unfinished projects covering each surface of my work area.  There are ALWAYS dishes piled in my sink and there are often five boxes of nearly empty cereal on the pantry shelves.  I have decided that I need to find out WHY I do this...why do I let it get out of control.  I always seem to have some kind of excuse and in reality I think a lot of it is because I'm a perfectionist.  I know that my house will never be perfect so why even try.  I was that way in school to, if I didn't know I would be the best at it I just didn't do it.  It was better to appear as though I didn't care, rather than to look like I couldn't excel.  I have decided that I need to face this head on and make some changes.  I've read about 25 different organization/decluttering books but none of them seem to resonate with me.  So I'm taking baby steps.  I will accomplish ONE project a day.  Project doesn't mean that I'm going to be tackling a closet every day but perhaps a drawer, or a shelf.  Today I cleaned out my craft room.  It was so liberating.  I even laid down on the floor and made carpet angels just because it was spacious and nicely vacuumed.  I know that this isn't of interest to anyone but me but I was hoping that by putting it in writing I'll stick to it.  I like to be held accountable for things and perhaps I'll make myself a chore chart with gold stars.

Seriously?

Today I overfilled the cupcake tin and ended up with cupcake all over my oven.  Then I got a knife stuck in the garbage disposer and ended up somehow having egg and icky water shoot up from the disposal and into my freshly washed hair and face.  I dropped an entire can of Dr Pepper on my bed and in an attempt to save what I could I ended up spilling it all over just about every surface in my bedroom.  To finish it off I hemmed Bailey's pants...inside out...both legs....and they weren't even straight.  I think perhaps my husband was right when he said I should just take a day off!

What She SHOULD Have Said

What She Said

“Mom, there was an orange with mold on it”.

What she should have said

“Hey Mom, remember last week when I didn't go to school for a couple of days.? Well....I never emptied my lunch box and left half of an orange in it. I didn't use that lunch box for a while so it is probably pretty nasty. So when you are walking around the house sniffing today (since it's the first day in two weeks you can smell anything) to find the smell, whatever you do, don't take a giant deep breath into my lunch box because it may very well have been so moldy that it turned into a fine green mold powder that you may accidentally inhale rendering the involuntary contraction of your lungs useless and cause a full on asthma attack which you haven't had in over a year and also cause you to vomit uncontrollably for a minute or two into your nice clean sink.”

Bailey

I thought 2011 was going to fantastic but when I went to church the first Sunday of the year and they informed me that Jacob was in senior primary I about lost it.  I can't imagine sending my little baby boy into the big kid class.  Then of course it was pointed out to me that he'll be baptized and join cub scouts this year (or maybe not if I can find a really good excuse). Tears started flowing almost instantly.  I managed to make it through the remainder of church but when I shared my sadness with Bailey she looked at me with her innocent eyes and said, "mom...it's a big year for all of us".  Oh my goodness....she is right!!!!!  She is turning 15 tomorrow. FIFTEEN!!!  Do you realize what 15 means?  That means I only have a few more years of my angel girl living in my home.  I bawled for about an hour.  I'm lucky that she has stayed so sweet and innocent.  She has yet to go through the bratty teen years (and hopefully will not) and she still asks my opinion and wants to spend time with me and shares all the details of her life with me.  I love it.  I feared that as she got older she and I would butt heads and that she'd pull away.  I  worried that she wouldn't be as kind and generous and that she would become more like the teenage Summer that I regret being.  It hasn't happened.  She is so well grounded and centered and focused and honestly, if I were a girl her age I'd probably hate her for being so perfect. I'm so grateful for her.  I'm grateful for her loving and nurturing personality.  I love that when she's mad she cleans.  I also love that I'm able to tick her off sometimes on purposed just because the house is a mess.  I love that she has goals...good goals....ones that she works toward daily.  I'm so proud of her.   These are the thoughts I have when I think of my little girl and then I remember how she pointed out that Kaitlyn will be 12 this year and be a Beehive...I cried again. At least she informed me that Zach will be a Senior this coming fall!  I guess I love everything about Bailey except for the fact that she is able to point out that I am closer and closer to being an empty nester and that I will need to find new purpose.  (sob sob sob).

Oops

I have the ability to stick my foot in the mouth better than most. My friend made a comment on her facebook page that she is having a problem with mice. She is trapping and killing them constantly. I meant to make a comment on her post that said, "My friend had that happen a couple years ago, dozens of them just popped right out while I was talking to her on the phone..I couldn't help but laugh". It turns out I made the comment on the wrong page...unfortunately it was on the KSL news page under the story about the Attorney General's colon cancer. I laughed for at least an hour.

A couple of years ago when I was in charge of the ward bulletin I misspelled a very important word. Of course I didn't notice until I was in Sacrament and nearly fell of the bench laughing so hard. I had to climb over the kids and make my exit while the bishopric looked on disapprovingly and half the ward frantically searched the bulletin to see what had set me off. There was a golf tournament and it was supposed to read, "18 holes for a $20".... I had written "18 HOES for $20". I was released not too long after that :)

Happy New Years

New Years has never been much of a holiday to me. I've never liked staying up late and partying just isn't my thing. I've also had a hard time with the idea that somehow making a resolution to change on a specific day is going to result in real change. I have yet to keep a resolution. This year will be different though. I have decided to make my resolutions retroactively. After I accomplish something I will decide that it was part of my resolution. So far I picked up all the clothes off my closet floor! Wahoo!!!! I am accomplished!

Some of the things I hope make it on to that list are:
1. put Christ first in my life
2. read my scriptures regularly
3. cook dinner with more than one dish involved
4. be more patient
5. keep my house cleaner
6. fold and put laundry away before it's time to wash again
7. make my craft room usable...again (as soon as I clean it someone uses it and it's buried again).
8. be more thoughtful
9. only buy things I REALLY need
10. play more games with my kids
11. be less judgmental
12. build a better relationship with extended family
13. think before I eat
14. worry less
15. be less negative
16. organize my recipe collection
17. try new foods
18. learn to knit
19. remember peoples birthdays(without Facebook)
20. find happiness in the moment