The J.S.E.A.M.M. Project

2012-01-30T21:42:00.001-07:00

Top Five Reasons Millie Says She Can't Sleep

5. "I watch Dora!"

4. "I sleep with you!" (Meaning she wants to lay in my bed and watch Dora.)

3. "I have drink of water?"

2. "I crying!"

And Number One:

"My eyes are open!"

Here's hoping she falls asleep soon!

The Teeter-Totter Theory

2012-01-29T22:46:00.001-07:00

I've recently discovered that I'm pretty typical.

I'm not the only woman in this world that takes on too much. That tries to do things perfectly and seemingly effortlessly. That has a million balls up in the air that are all about to fall at any second.

But I can't juggle. Mine is a teeter-totter and I'm up in the air with all my stresses sitting at the bottom of the totter. Sometimes one little shift of events/stresses knocks me off my teeter-totter. That really did happen to me once when I was about ten. My leg got pinned under the teeter-totter as it crashed to the ground and it hurt ... a lot. So the prospect of falling off my teeter-totter really kind of freaks me out.

But it happens. My house is often a mess. My dishes are rarely done by a decent time of day. I have toilets that needs scrubbing. I have tons of friends that seem to have so much in place where I lack. (All that sentence does is prove that I have a major issue with comparing myself to others.) I can't say no, even when I really, really should.

I think I'm entitled to a few bad days here and there.

Sometimes it's really easy to blame the hormones. They are a-ragin', after all. And I'm sure that has plenty to do with some of my more irrational rants ("WHO LEFT THAT PILLOW ON THE FLOOR???"). But I have to acknowledge that there are other forces at work in my life as well.

I know a lot of women have plenty of stress. I realize that and even acknowledge it.

Of course, I also have the maturity of a preschooler sometimes and can't help but think my issues are bigger than other people's. And that doesn't do anything to help me.

There's really no point to this post but to put it out there that I'm at a stage where my teeter-totter is teetering and tottering.

I don't know that there's an end in sight for this stage I'm in. I'm sure there is one, but I can't see it yet. Until it appears, I just have to hold on. And on the bad days when my teeter-totter slams me to the ground, I just need to keep my legs out from under me.

The Nesting Beast

2012-01-24T22:44:00.002-07:00

Tonight I was trying to think of what I might possibly blog about. Because Goodness knows if I don't make an effort to get on here regularly, I just may go MIA again.

So the obvious choice was to upload some pictures from off my camera.

But I couldn't find my camera.

This awoke the beast.

As much as I like to blame my hormones for my extremely short temper fuse, this was a different sort of hormonal beast.

The Nesting Beast.

I searched the usual hiding spots for the camera, but to no avail. Then I checked the not-as-usual hiding spots. Culprit number one: the van.

Oh, the dang van.

The dang van hasn't been cleaned out since we came back from our vacation to Colorado. Yeah, it's that gross. So I spent several infuriating minutes looking under the seats, in left-behind backpacks, and under countless pieces of paper (not to mention all the other crap I'm too embarrassed to mention). The whole time the Nesting Beast began rearing her ugly head.

It was like an out of body experience. I could see the Nesting Beast ripping out of my already-full maternity clothes, my skin turning green, and my intelligence diminishing so I could only grunt in single syllables: "Beast clean!"

The Nesting Beast really isn't such a bad thing all the time. But it sure would be nice if she could make an appearance when I'm not twice my usual size. In looking under the dang van seats I nearly got stuck like a freaking turtle flipped over on the topside of his shell. Now, how am I supposed to clean when I'm severely limited in what I can do?

And when the Nesting Beast realizes she won't get to do all the things she wants to, she'll become even more enraged. And then she'll begin smashing stuff and flipping cars and grunting things that don't even qualify as syllables.

Should make for an interesting day tomorrow.

And in case you were wondering, I found 3 flashlights on my quest of looking for the camera. And yes, I used them CSI-style and wandered around my half-lit house using them to look for my camera.

And I found it.

If My Life Had an MP3 Player

2012-01-21T00:16:00.001-07:00

I've been playing around with Emma's mp3 player she got for Christmas. She wanted a bunch of different songs uploaded on it. It's gotten me thinking about the music in my life.

If I were to set my day to music it would go something like this:

Yesterday I woke up in a quirky and somewhat weird mood.

(Until I found this video online I had no idea what all the lyrics of this song were. But it's the music that matters. [Btw, the dude in this reminds me of my brother when he and I were in Dead Man together and he played the murderer -- weird].) This song accompanied me as I got the kids ready for school and off to the bus.

As the events began to unfold for the day, things changed a bit. You see, I'm currently homeschooling Abby (yep, heading down that adventurous road again) and she's still learning that there's a bit of independence in home school, just not as much as she wants. So my playlist shuffled and we got this gem:

And as the day continued, more kids came home. And suddenly the house was full of kids that didn't want to do homework or chores. They wanted to watch TV or play outside or do nothing at all.

I've never done drugs of any kind, but I can't help but think that four children who are all crying, whining, complaining, yelling, and fighting bring about the same chaos into your mind that the acid which inspired most 1960s music must have.

Hence, my next music choice.

Yeah, this one is nearly 18 minutes long. Of course, it takes a lot less than 18 minutes for the house to go from quiet to uncontrolled upheaval.

By the end of the day, I was exhausted. I just wanted peace and quiet. So after the kids cleaned up their messes from the day, they finally fell asleep and I did too so I plugged in my inner-mp3 player and let it charge for the night.

I haven't yet decided what today's music was. But I'm pretty sure I know how tomorrow's music will begin.

I Am...

2012-01-16T22:23:00.000-07:00

I've never been one for labels, but I've noticed lately that I can't deny that I've become "things".

I Am...

a couponer. I coupon. I have multiple Sunday papers delivered to my home. I spend hours clipping and sorting and finding the sales matching up to my coupons.

This started out as something to try. I didn't really expect it to be a life altering project. But it did. And now I feel naughty when I go to the store without my coupon folder (yep, I keep them all in a folder). Like when I was a teller and I had to pull my bait money to check to make sure the alarms were working. It's a very naughty feeling.

I Am...

a runner. I've been watching the people in our neighborhood running throughout the day. Because we live in Arizona, it's not unreasonable to see people out during every hour of the day. But I'm watching these people and they are of different levels in their running. Some people are the same ones I've seen running for the last year. Some people are getting back into running after a short sabbatical of having a baby. And some people are running for the first time.

It doesn't matter how they're doing, how sweaty and tired they are, or how fast or slow they are going. I envy them. I want to run. I want to feel the warm sun counteract the cool breeze. I want to feel the pavement pounding under my feet and watch my shadow round the corners with me. I want to listen to my favorite running songs and feel them surge me forward toward my ending point.

I miss running. I can't wait to do it again.

I Am...

Josh drew the cover art. Isn't he awesome?

a writer. I know it's hard to believe with all of the weeks I've neglected to get on this blog, but one thing I did while I was away from blog land was write a novella for my daughter. A few years ago I began making a homemade gift for each kid each Christmas. This year I wrote Emma a book about a blonde 10-year-old girl who went to Colorado to visit her grandmother for a few weeks in the summer. I loved writing this story. It flowed from my brain to the paper so easily. Emma is still reading it and since it's her opinion that matters most to me, I look forward to knowing what she thinks.

And now I know I can do it. I can write a story from beginning to end. It's time to begin the next one.

Pregnantly Stupid

2012-01-13T23:09:00.000-07:00

I don't know that I've ever gone so long without blogging. Not since I started this thing up which was about three and a half years ago. It almost feels like it's been that long since I last updated.

But there have been some reasons for my lack of updates.

I'm pregnantly stupid.

There are several different brands of pregnant stupidity. I can list three that I have personally been experiencing.

(Oh, in case you didn't know, I'm 22 or 23 weeks pregnant.)

CASE 1: One Track Mind Stupid

When you're prego it's hard to imagine having a conversation with another person over something other than the fact that you are pregnant. It's way easy to forget that there are other events happening in life when there's a human life budding within you. Especially when you just want to barf and sleep all day long... not necessarily in that order.

This time around it's been different than before. We are having our fifth child. However, this is my eighth pregnancy. I got to go on a bunch of hormones for the first trimester which absolutely heightened all the negative aspects of pregnancy. It's hard to focus on anything else when you're lucky to get out of bed at all.

And so I've been focused on one thing. Me. And all of that self-focus has made me stupid. Pregnantly stupid.

CASE 2: Borrowed Brain Cells Stupid

Josh has told me more than once that when I'm pregnant my blonde roots become extremely apparent. It seems that the little person growing in my womb gets a little help in shaping his/her intelligence by borrowing my brain cells.

This makes having any sort of an intellectual conversation nearly impossible. And forget about having anything of interest to write about on a blog. I have had very little desire to display my lack of mental capabilities.

And it's the reason I'm "22 or 23" weeks pregnant. I have no idea which it is. That would require remembering something.

But it's January. Time to hit the Redo Button (like the Staples Easy Button, but for resolutions). Time to get my blog writing and family updating back on track. Plus, I'm in my second trimester now and it's time for me to unleash the tirades of hormonal imbalance.

CASE 3: Unnecessary Paranoia Stupid

It's no secret. We've been dealing with the heartbreak of two miscarriages over the last 15 months. Getting past the first 6 weeks of this pregnancy was a good sign. And should have bolstered my confidence in keeping this baby.

But I've been paranoid.

Even hitting the 20 week mark didn't aspire much more confidence.

We usually begin stocking up on diapers by this point in the pregnancy. I haven't bought any yet. Why? Because I'm afraid to count my chicken. The reality of this baby still hits me between the eyes, startling me to acknowledge that I'm not just fat. There's a baby in there. And then I realize that I'm being kind of stupid by not completely accepting that this baby is coming to our family. It's time to get beyond my own insecurities and embrace this new miracle.

Baby Girl Number 4. We are getting really excited for May 9th, 7:30 am to come around. There are definitely some advantages to having a planned c-section.

And so, I hope to come back to the blogging world. Despite being pregnantly stupid.

The Colorado Times, Final Copy

2011-11-07T22:28:00.000-07:00

On our way home we stopped and checked out the Four Corners National Monument.

Note: If you ever plan to visit, bring cash. It cost us $3/person (over the age of 5) and they only accept cash. Kind of a rip off, I think, but whatever. At least we've been there now.

All four kids in all four states. And I've lived in each of those states at some point in my life.

Really not sure what it takes to get the kids to take a pretty picture. Obviously, not the words, "Pose for me!"

The kids teetering on the borders of New Mexico and Arizona.

Josh and me. Don't judge. I'd been sick and in the car for hours.

The Colorado Times, Issue 3

2011-11-07T22:14:00.000-07:00

After we stopped in the Springs, we took a ride to southern Colorado where we spent some time with Josh's mom.

We had lots of fun with her as well.

There's a story of when Josh's mom was younger. They went on vacation and her dad only took pictures of all the old war ships they saw. When her mother asked him to take a picture of the children, he said only if they posed to point out the ship which was also in the photo. Thus, the pose above is a necessary element of most photo opportunities.

The Colorado Times, Issue 2

2011-11-07T22:07:00.000-07:00

After we went and spent some fun time at my sister's house we headed down to Colorado Springs and hung out with Josh's dad.

We went to the zoo.

What'cha see there, Millie?

Feeding the baby giraffe.

Emma makes a friend.

Abby bonding with the gorilla.

I told the kids to pose like they're scared of the bear. I think we need to consider some professional help.

And we had a big birthday bash for Josh.

Here are some rare shots of most of the family.

Kids and grandkids

Everybody... if you want names, let me know and I'll do my best to label everyone.

Left to right: Amanda (sister), Justin (brother), Curtis (dad), Jake (brother), Jaymen (brother), and Josh

It was tons of fun.

The Colorado Times, Issue 1

2011-10-24T23:08:00.000-07:00

We headed to Colorado for Fall Break. It's the first family vacation we've taken since Millie was about 3 months old -- she turns 3 years old in two months. It was time to get the heck out of Dodge.

So we left the heat (yes, it's still in the 90s here in good ol' AZ) and went to the mountains.

It was a good choice.

We stopped and had some vacay time with my sister and her family. It just so happened to be the weekend my nephew Trenton was baptized and my parents and my two brothers and their families all came. We had a lot of fun with everyone and loved watching sweet Trenton on his special day.

On the trampoline

Josh with Abby, Teagan, Emma, and Millie

Abby asked for an extra picture so she could pose. Vogue!

We also were introduced to Kid History. Have you seen these? A family with at least 4 brothers has told family stories to their kids so many times that the kids can retell the story. The adults then take the kids' narration and dialogue and act them out. My description does not to do it justice. You much watch it to completely get it.

This one is good too.

There are six episodes and I highly recommend that you watch all of them. Highly. And if you don't begin quoting it, we may need to reevaluate our friendship.

Randay!!! Randay!! Randay!!! Randay!!! Randay!!! Randy?

Bye-Bye Bah

2011-09-26T22:41:00.000-07:00

Millie is getting to be a big girl. And it's time for her to give up some of the things that Mommy has let her hold on to. Millie has been our baby for nearly 3 years now and it has been hard for me to tell her to give up her Bah, or pacifier as most people call it. She's so cute with it and I know it gives her comfort.

But it's time to say bye-bye.

Last night Millie slept without her Bah for the first time ever. She slept through the night okay, but the sadness of being denied her Bah was difficult for about 20 minutes before she fell asleep. The look on her face was priceless and my heart broke as I wondered if she thought I had kidnapped her best friend. It was the look of true sadness. I tried to hug her and comfort her, but eventually she just wore herself out.

Tonight she asked me again where her Bah was. Actually, she said about two or three sentences worth of words but I couldn't understand any of them. I just kept reminding her that we said bye-bye to her Bah. Then I wondered if I should let her literally say good-bye to her Bah.

We went downstairs and I grabbed her Bahs (three of them) from the top of the fridge (the only place I can keep them where she can't reach them) and told her we needed to say bye-bye and throw them in the trash.

I instantly had the notion that I was being too harsh. Was it mean to have her throw them away rather than some cute "give them to babies" sort of thing? Millie was crying and said she didn't want to say bye-bye. I was dying inside and asked Josh what we should do, especially since she was making that face again! I held her in my arms with the other kids standing around watching Millie struggle with becoming a big girl and Josh telling me of a book about giving pacifiers to baby horses.

I turned to him and asked if he thought I should let her have her Bah until I could get a copy of this book when suddenly Millie threw both of her arms up the air and yelled, "OK! I say bye-bye to Bah!!!" The five of us stared at each other in shock as I held out the Bahs to Millie. She took them one at a time and threw them into the garbage can. When she finished she yelled, "I did it!!" and the rest of us cheered with her.

We all began laughing at the sudden turn of events. I began crying (shock) and Matt began laughing so hard he cried too (actual shock)! He told me that he's never been prouder of his little sister than at that moment. Millie went upstairs and on her way she pointed to the top of the fridge and announced, "All gone!"

Yep. they're all gone. Our baby is becoming a Big Girl!

Border Woes

2011-09-05T22:58:00.000-07:00

In case you didn't know, when you travel along the roads in the southwestern US, and you are close to the Mexican border, you pass through Border Patrol Checkpoint Stations.

It doesn't matter that I'm a legal US citizen. Nor does it matter than all of the people in my vehicle are US citizens. I get a bit intimidated by the whole thing. There are working dogs, men with guns, the whole sha-bang.
So when we go to visit my parents and have to stop at one of these checkpoint areas, I automatically sit up straighter, use words like "yes sir," and hope I don't say something stupid. Because they don't check my I.D. They ask me questions.

Today we visited Mom and Dad for Labor Day. And on the way home tonight I was asked, "What nationality are you?" I immediately replied with my answer, but couldn't help but wonder as we drove away, What if I'd gotten mixed up and nervous and said the wrong thing?

So now that all of these thoughts have come into my head, next time I visit my parents I'm going to be thinking extra hard about what my answers should be. Not because I'm lying, but because I don't want to say the wrong thing!

Date Morning

2011-08-29T22:36:00.000-07:00

Most people will shout for joy when they get to experience Date Night.

When you live with a night-shifter, your schedule goes a bit caddywhompus. There are all sorts of things you do differently.

We eat dinner early (5 - 5:30pm) so he can eat with us before he leaves for the night.
Days off are not real days off unless there are at least 2 scheduled in a row. Otherwise the day off is overshadowed by his need to sleep and recover from working the night before.
Doctor, dentist and other appointments must be carefully scheduled around sleep-time, not work-time.
Cleaning the Master Bath and/or Bedroom is tricky when he's sleeping during the day and your cleaning capacity functions better before dinner.
AND, Date Night is rarely an option. A much more viable option is Date Morning

So this morning, at about 9am we headed off to our date. First, we went bowling. In case you didn't know, East Mesa, AZ, is notorious for housing senior citizens. And this just happened to be where the bowling alley was located. We pulled into the parking lot and I was surprised to see it so full of cars.

I had no idea so many senior citizens bowled together on Monday mornings.

Josh and Millie bowling together

We were easily the youngest people there by at least 30 years. The group next to us was probably in their 70s. But, man, did those old people know how to have fun!

Every time Millie bowled, she'd turn around and start jumping and yelling, "I did it! I did it!"

Josh is a good bowler.

That's right. I had 5 gutter balls. And this was my best game. What of it???

I am not.

After that we decided to grab some lunch and then head to the new LDS Gilbert, AZ Temple.

It's still very much a work in progress, but it was really cool to stop by the Visitor Trailer to see so many of the plans of what it will all look like sometime in 2013.

The tall spires are the elevator shafts. They stand 53' high. The Angel Moroni will cap the temple at 193' high, an additional 140' above the elevator shafts. It's hard to understand how grand that will be from the pictures because it's hard to understand how grand that will be even when you look at it in person.

And a temple only 15 miles away from home! How great will that be???

And that, my friends, is a Date Morning. We got home in plenty of time to then separate to run different errands, but it was a wonderful morning while it lasted.

#30 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-25T22:57:00.000-07:00

#30 A movie in the theater at this time last year

We went to the movie theater a few times last August. I remember this because I had to look up which movies were in the theater. But I really didn't care for any of them.

But a few months ago Josh and I got a movie from Netflix that came out last August.

Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World

This is kind of a weird movie to end this challenge with. It's a much different movie than any of the others I've listed. And it's a bit of a weird movie anyway. I wouldn't just go ahead and recommend this movie, but I did like it.

Scott Pilgrim must fight off the evil exes of the girl he likes in order to be with her. And because it's based on a graphic novel (meaning a comic book type novel and not porn, which is what I originally thought that term meant) there's lots of psychedelic oddness to the movie.

It's just very different, quite weird, and somehow enjoyable. But I don't know that it's one that everyone will like.

#29 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-24T22:20:00.000-07:00

#29 A movie from your childhood

So many of the movies I've already listed are from my childhood. I watched them for years and grew up loving them.

So, one set of movies from my childhood that I absolutely loved (and still do), but haven't mentioned yet....

The Muppet Movie

This includes all forms of the Muppets: The Muppets Take Manhattan, The Great Muppet Caper, and the newer movies like Muppets From Space and A Muppet Christmas Carol. Plus the newest of the series which is coming out this Thanksgiving, The Muppets. Pretty much, any movie with the word Muppet in the title is going to be a good movie. And very quotable.

Watching these movies takes me back to my childhood. And watching my children love these movies just creates moments of pure joy.

And this clip is from The Muppet Show, which is not technically a movie, but it made me laugh. My mom and dad still tell the story of me making us all watch The Muppet Show every time it was on. And if you need something to do, watch all the related videos. They are all so worth it!

#28 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-23T22:07:00.000-07:00

#28 Favorite movie adaptation of a book

In 8th grade we had to read

The Outsiders

I thought it was a good book, especially considering that it was written by a girl only a year older than I was at that time.

But then I found out who starred in the movie.

Matt Dillon. Ralph Macchio. Patrick Swayze. Rob Lowe. Emilio Estevez. Tom Cruise.

It's one of the few movies I've seen that stayed very true to the book.

#27 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-23T21:30:00.000-07:00

Another two movies in one night.

#27 A movie you wish you had directed

There's really only one movie that comes to my mind for this category. A near-theatrical spectacle.

The Phantom of the Opera

The topic of directing takes me directly to the theatrical stage. After all, my senior thesis in college was to direct. And I loved it.

I thought the film direction of Phantom was actually very good. The vibrancy of the lighting, the costumes, the characters. It's an over-the-top production, which is what you would expect an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical would be. It makes me miss my days living in the theatre.

I love Minnie Driver in this, btw.

#26 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-21T22:17:00.001-07:00

#26 A movie you wish you had starred in

Josh asked me what today's post was going to be. I told him this challenge and he said he knew what I'd choose....

Pirates of the Caribbean

I tried to weigh other options, but kept coming back to this movie. After all, Josh justified his answer very well:

I'd be wooed by Orlando Bloom
I'd be wooed by Johnny Depp
I'd get to swing around a big sword and fight pirates

That's good enough for me.

#25 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-21T22:01:00.000-07:00

#25 The movie you last saw in the theater

I missed this post last night (did you miss it too?). I got caught up in preparing for my new calling at church -- Cub Scout Committee Chair -- can we say "yikes"?

So you get two tonight. Yippee.

This summer we saw a lot of movies. One of the local movie theaters offered free movies through the summer. So we saw most of what was offered, whether we already owned the DVD or not. Plus, Josh gets discount tickets through work, so our list of movies was large.

This summer we saw:

Cars 2

Transformers 3

Despicable Me

Nanny McPhee Returns

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2

X-Men: First Class

Shrek 4

How to Train Your Dragon

But the last one we saw was

The Smurfs

I give this movie an "Eh." It was cute enough, and there were a few times that I literally laughed out loud. But Gargamel was annoying, despite the fact that he was played by Hank Azaria, who I absolutely love. There was some crude humor, especially with some of the explicit uses of the word "smurf". You could rent it from Redbox, but be sure to watch it before you buy it.

#24 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-19T21:52:00.000-07:00

#24 A movie you can watch over and over

There are several movies I have watched many times throughout my life. When I was younger I'd put on Back to the Future and watch it a few times a week. So that almost became tonight's spotlight. But there's another movie I've watched more recently.

Oceans 11

There are so many big names in this movie and they all are fun to watch -- George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, and (my favorite) Matt Damon. Clooney plays Danny Ocean, but everyone has their part. Everyone has their time in the sun. Everyone has great chemistry. I love all the little mumbles and looks between characters. There's a lot being said, both verbally and nonverbally, and they all play it off very well. And what's even better is the fact that the second and third movies are as delightful. Granted, by the time you get to the third movie it's a bit predictable, but still it's delightful.

Now that I've mentioned it, I'm thinking I'll have to watch it tonight.

It's that good.

#23 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-18T22:03:00.000-07:00

#23 A movie you wish you could live in

I love Disney movies. Both the animated and the live action movies. But one of my favorites has always been

Summer Magic

A recently widowed woman takes her three children from Boston to a small town in Maine to "live off the land." And since it's a Disney movie made in 1963, and the movie takes place during "rag time," it's got such great, fun songs.

I'd love to live in a quaint and beautiful town, full of good people I know and love, and burst into song for any and every reason. I always wanted to fix up a big, beautiful house and hold a ball in the barn where all our friends and neighbors could come and a tall, dark, handsome stranger comes in and sweeps me off my feet.

Someday I do plan to visit Maine. And I have my tall, dark, handsome man. Now I need to start bursting into song every 20 minutes to enhance the action of my life and my life will literally be Summer Magic.

#22 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-17T21:54:00.001-07:00

#22 A movie you watch when you're sad

I mope. I'm a moper. I also dwell. I dwell on moping. I'm a pretty depressing sad person.

But because I don't like rushing out of sad mode, and movies generally make me happy, I don't watch a lot of movies when I'm sad. But if I watch anything, it's something familiar, something that won't jostle my emotions more than they already are. Something mellow.

Mona Lisa Smile

This is a pretty good conglomeration of some humor, some drama, some love, some hate, some feminism, some traditionalism. I love the flavor of the 1950s and find so much intrigue in the dilemma of family vs career, a dilemma that continues sixty years later.

The cast is great and includes Julia Roberts, Kirsten Dunst, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and (my favorite in the movie) Julia Stiles.

It's an easy movie to watch. And now I've seen it so many times that it's very familiar. No emotional surprises. That way I can mope all I want.

#21 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-16T22:12:00.000-07:00

#21 A movie you watch when you're happy

One thing that makes me happy, without fail, is Christmas. I love Christmas. I love the Reason, the music, the food, the gifts, the jubilee, the Good Will. And of course the movies.

One movie I love to watch, and happily watch several times each Christmas (like TONS), is

Elf

This movie makes me happy and it focuses on one of the times of year that makes me happy. Even if you're not a Will Ferrell fan, this is a good one. I love the sincerity of Buddy the Elf. His childlike qualities make him instantly lovable. It's just a good, lighthearted Christmas movie featuring Santa, elves, the North Pole, and Christmas Cheer. It makes me happy just thinking about it.

My favorite 30 seconds of the movie:

#20 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-16T00:16:00.000-07:00

#20 A movie you wish had a sequel

I really enjoy movies that incorporate a lot of other known storylines into the plot. One of the best examples of this is

The Brothers Grimm

It's a story about the Grimm brothers as they travel the countryside and encounter different experiences that lend themselves to the stories the eventually publish. So all of these stories are found throughout the movie, like Red Riding Hood and Snow White. It's fun to find the stories and identify them. I'm fascinated by the Grimm brothers, although I do have to admit that I haven't read all of the stories. They really are quite grim, no pun intended.

Plus, there's a rumor in our family that we're related to them, so that's even cooler.

But I have some strict rules about sequels.
1) The original actors must resume their roles.
2) The sequel must stay loyal to the original.

Unfortunately, there is no way this story can continue. Rule 2 can be completed. There are plenty of Grimm stories that can used for a sequel. But the saddest thing is that Rule 1 cannot be kept.

I loved the camaraderie of the two Grimms, played by Matt Damon and Heath Ledger. They played so well off each other and despite the darkness of the film, it was FUN. But since poor Heath passed away three years ago, Rule 1 is forever broken.

It really makes me sad and I really do wish it could have a sequel. I miss Heath.

#19 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-14T21:48:00.000-07:00

#19 A movie from your favorite director

I've mentioned before that I'm a sucker for romantic comedies. It's the first subcategory I'll peruse when looking for a movie to watch on Netflix.

So one of my favorite directors is Nora Ephron. She's not a major household name like Spielberg, but you've probably seen a few of her movies:

Julie & Julia

Bewitched

Lucky Numbers

You've Got Mail

Michael

Sleepless in Seattle

Plus, she wrote or did the screenplay for all but Lucky Numbers.

But one of my favorites of all is

Mixed Nuts

It's got some of the funniest people in it, including Steve Martin and Madeline Kahn. Adam Sandler sings stupid songs while accompanying himself on the ukulele. And you can see Liev Schreiber (aka Sabretooth from Wolverine) in drag. And what's more hilarious than a crisis hotline center during the holidays? Okay, that's a bit dark, but it's still funny.

And I'd have to say I've got runners-up for this category:

Rob Reiner (The Princess Bride)

and

Garry Marshall (Runaway Bride)

I realize those are both "bride" movies, but they are still great.

#18 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-13T23:55:00.000-07:00

#18 A movie you wish was in theaters

Ben Hur

I don't know that I'd want to watch this entire movie in the theater. It's a long one. And, truthfully, the only reason I watched it is because it's on the American Film Institute's (AFI's) Top 100 Movies List. You'd need a few buckets of popcorn to make it through. And a pause button to run to the bathroom because of the numbers of sodas you'd need to drink as well.

But it certainly has one of the most amazing scenes I've ever seen: the chariot race.

It's infamous. Real people, real horses, real crowds of people watching. And no CGI. It would be awesome to see on the big screen. Especially as you're sitting in the middle of the upper rows.

Ben Hur - Chariot Race by andybe29

It really is a great story and this scene is more impressive when it remains in context with the rest of the movie. It's worth watching at least once during your lifetime.

#17 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-12T22:12:00.000-07:00

#17 A movie you want everyone to see

At first thought I wanted everyone to see a movie that inspired me or stirred me to seek change. But then I realized what movie I want everyone to see.

The Goonies

I know, this sounds stupid, but there is a true reason for this.

Several weeks ago one of the instructors at the gym made a comment that she had never seen a certain movie. I don't remember which one it was, but I remember being surprised because I had been pretty sure everyone had seen it. Then she dropped the bomb. She said, "And I've never seen Goonies either."

I groaned. I groaned so loud that the other instructor could hear me above the music playing (the instructors wear head mics to be heard over the music easier) and she laughed at the appalled look upon my face.

I consider myself a Christian woman. I try to follow the teaching of, "Judge not that ye be not judged."

Watching The Goonies is a rite of passage. I don't really know where the passage leads or where it comes from, but it is necessary to experience. And if you don't, I judge you.

So please, for the sake of my soul, please watch this watch this movie. I do not want to judge you. I have enough strikes against me as it is, don't make me add another.

#16 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-11T22:06:00.000-07:00

#16 A movie you used to dislike but now like

My dad watches Westerns. I lot of Westerns. I grew up watching them. And about five seconds into them I'd leave the room and find something else to do. But I saw the first little bits of most John Wayne movies.

One time I told my dad that my favorite Western was Back to the Future: Part III.

But I have to say that I now enjoy Westerns. I'm sure my husband had some influence over that. It's nearly impossible to marry a man like Josh and not appreciate cowboys, horses and the Old West.

I have to say that despite all my efforts as a kid to deny my upbringing and influence of my father, I like Westerns. I like that the first movie I ever watched with Josh was Tombstone. I like the Old West and the history associated with it.

But I have to say that the movie I disliked but now really like is

True Grit

The John Wayne version is classic.

But I think I might like the updated Jeff Bridges version even more. (Matt Damon = Awesome)

True Grit - One-eyed Man True Grit (2010 film), Clips

I think that can count. It's essentially the same story. And I do like the classic version much more than I used to.

#15 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-10T21:50:00.000-07:00

#15 The first movie you remember watching in the theater

As I said before, my friend Jim is playing this game on Facebook. This question was originally: A movie that describes you. He didn't care for that question and changed it to the first movie you remember watching in the theater.

Because there are very few movies highlighting the lives and trials of Mormon mothers in the 21st century, I've chosen Jim's version. Someday I'll make my own movie and then this question will be a lot easier to answer. Influence my life and you can be in the movie too.

So, the very first movie I remember watching in the theater was

Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back

I was four months shy of being 3-years-old when this movie was released. I remember going to the theater with my mom and dad. I'm pretty sure it was supposed to be a date night for them. Mom was about 5 months pregnant and I was their only other child, so they probably figured it would be easier to bring me to the theater rather than find a babysitter.

They were wrong. When a 2-year-old doesn't want to sit still and watch a movie, she'll do whatever she can to make you wish you hadn't brought her. I can actually remember thinking to myself that if I threw a big enough fit, then Mom and Dad would have to take me home.

I remember Mom fighting with me until she finally just gave up. I sat on the floor. I'm pretty sure I gave up on trying to go home at that point. If I remember right I just laid on the floor for most of the movie.

Ah, Harrison.

So I guess I technically didn't watch this movie at the theater, but I was on the theater floor as it played on the screen.

I don't remember going to another movie at the theater until my parents took us to go see E.T. two years later.

Josh and me (thank you, Disneyland). This is from Return of the Jedi, but it's still fun.

Now I love the movie. And don't worry. My children have all returned the favor of throwing fits in the movie theater. I got it back in full force.

#14 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-09T22:37:00.000-07:00

#14 A movie no one would expect you to love

Just when I think I've answered the hardest question, this one pops up.

I'm pretty diverse in what I like. Of course, I have my favorites.... comedies of all kind. And I like most genres. But there are a few genres I don't really care for. Namely, foreign films and ghost stories. I don't do ghost stories.

So it would be a real shocker if I loved a foreign ghost movie. So closest thing I can think of is

Big Trouble in Little China

Okay, I don't think it's hard to believe that I like this movie. After all, who can resist Kurt Russell in his tank top? But there's a foreign element and there's some creepy ghost-like dude.

It's the best I can come up with.

#13 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-08T13:37:00.000-07:00

#13 A movie that is a guilty pleasure

Okay, how do you define a "guilty pleasure"? Wikipedia says, "A guilty pleasure is something one enjoys and considers pleasurable despite feeling guilt for enjoying it. The 'guilt' involved is sometimes simply fear of others discovering one's lowbrow or otherwise embarrassing tastes."

My guilty pleasure: Adam Sandler.

He's made more mature movies in the last few years, but I will still quote and refer to the first Sandler movie I ever saw:

Billy Madison

I know, I know. It's stupid, it's crude, it's inappropriate, it's my guilty pleasure.

Now you all know my "lowbrow or otherwise embarrassing tastes."

#12 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-08T13:22:00.000-07:00

#12 A movie you like from an actor you don't like

Robin Hood - Prince of Thieves

Oh, wait. I mean:

One of the greatest enigmas of Hollywood, in my opinion, is how in the world Keven Costner made it so big. The dude isn't handsome. He's pretty monotonous. If the eyes are the window to the soul, Costner has none. His eyes are dead.

He is by far my least favorite actor.

But the fact is, he's made a couple decent movies, despite his involvement.

I'd be fine if they released a version with Costner edited out and it focused on the other major players: Morgan Freeman, Alan Rickman, and Christian Slater (yes, I had a crush on Slater in 1991 when this movie came out). But then the movie would be about 20 minutes long, if that. Oh well.

#11 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-06T00:09:00.000-07:00

#11 Favorite actor/actress

I'm pretty sure this is the hardest question of all. How do you narrow it down?

So I just narrowed it down to my top two of each.

Actor

Tim Curry. He's one of the creepiest villains ever, but I really love his "against-type" characters, those characters you don't expect him to play. And Dr Poole in Oscar is one of his best against-type characters.

Tom Selleck. I just love the man. I'll watch anything that has him in it, no matter what the movie/show is. Plus, Josh is fine with me watching this debonair man because of his whole man-crush thing. Fine with me.

Actress

Joan Cusack. I identify quite a bit with Joan. Rarely the leading lady, generally the best friend, and usually one of the quirkiest characters. She's great. Who wouldn't want to do a movie with her? Uh, I mean, watch one of her movies. (I put Nine Months on here, not because it's my favorite movie but because the birth scene at the end of the movie is one of Joan's funniest scenes: "This is my moment!" Hilarious!)

NINE MONTHS: Movie Trailer. Watch more top selected videos about: Hugh Grant, Robin Williams

Meg Ryan is my other favorite. I love so many of her movies, especially since I'm a sucker for romantic comedies. Meg is the queen of romantic comedies.

#10 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-05T00:50:00.000-07:00

#10 A movie that bores you

Das Boot

This was the most boring movie I've ever seen. Ever.

The only reason I watched it is because it was required for a cinema class I took at Utah State. To the movie's credit, this may be why it was so boring to me -- aren't things worse when they're forced upon you?

Basically, 2 1/2 hours of watching Germans in a submarine during WWII. And you can't even "close your eyes" and listen to the movie because you have to read the stupid subtitles.

Not even worth sticking a clip on here. If you're a glutton for punishment, find it on DVD yourself.

#9 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-03T21:27:00.000-07:00

#9 A movie you can dance to

I'm not much of a dancer, but this movie makes me wish I was.

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

This is one of the greatest movies ever. I remember watching this movie for the first time when I was about five years old and I was fascinated by it.

A man named Adam goes to town looking for a wife. Within minutes he casts his eye on a small, lively girl named Milly and he marries her to take her to the backwoods to cook and clean for him and his six brothers. In a nutshell, there's tons of dancing, singing, and swooning. Of course, Adam learns he can't just expect his wife to be his cleaning lady.

The choreography in this movie is phenomenal. Incredible. Amazing. Cinematic history.

I don't even think I'm exaggerating.

And, of course, everyone who watches this has their favorite brother or girl. My favorite brother was Benjamin. He had "heavenly eyes and just the right size." Funny, I also think that of Josh. I always thought it would be fun to play Dorcus on stage, especially since she pairs up with Benjamin. And I love the name Milly, so she's one of my favorites too!

This clip is the entire barn raising dance. It's a bit longer than most of the other clips I've posted, but soooo worth it!

Hollywood can never remake this one, I don't think. But I'd love to see the original remastered and in widescreen.

#8 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-02T23:05:00.000-07:00

#8 A movie you know by heart

Annie

In 1982, Annie came to theaters. I was five.

And my love of movies began.

Actually, it began a couple years later when Annie came to HBO. My mom taped it for me. I watched it over and over and over and over.

I can sing the songs. I can quote the dialogue. I can mimic most of the choreography (I've never been much of a dancer).

I started watching this movie at such a young age that I didn't understand everything that was going on or was being said. As I got older I'd pick up on new things here and there: Miss Hannigan's "Bonus Iries" she sings about in one of the songs -- took me years to realize she meant "Buenos Aires." It became fun finding nuances in a movie I had seen hundreds of times before.

I know every bit of this movie. Wait. That's a lie. Someone taped over about 30 seconds of Mom's VHS copy during Annie's dialogue to Daddy Warbucks when she first meets him. I don't know what they say there. It's the only part of the movie I can't quote.

Movie synopsis: Orphan girl overcomes adversity and gets adopted by one of the richest men in the world during the Great Depression.

I've talked about this movie before. In case you don't remember, Carol Burnett is the most amazing person in the entire world and I've wanted to be Miss Hannigan on Broadway for most of my life. I also love Albert Finney, Bernadette Peters, and of course, Tim Curry.

I don't think it's a coincidence that I've already mentioned Carol Burnett and Albert Finney on this countdown.

#7 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-08-02T01:09:00.000-07:00

#7 A movie that reminds you of a specific event

Ready for entirely too much information?

In 1998, I began writing to Josh while he was on his mission. He was serving in South Africa, so our letters took about four weeks to reach the other person. It was a slow beginning to our friendship. But the last six weeks he was there we were allowed to email to each other. Nowadays it's not unheard of for a missionary to use email. Or even Facebook. But in the olden days getting to email once a week was a big deal.

That started out our courtship. Josh got off the airplane (after a couple days' worth of travel) and it didn't take long for me to know I was going to marry him. It was bliss. I was completely head over heels in love (still am) but I was letting Josh make the first move. I let him think he was in charge.

We spent everyday together after he got home. We spent most of Christmas Day and Night together. And, again, everyday after that.

Finally, New Years Eve came around. Josh and I sat cozily by each other on the cold Colorado night as we watched a movie together. After the movie was over, we stood out on the deck of my parents' home and braved the freezing night air as we watched fireworks explode over Pikes Peak. It was beautiful, serene, and romantic.

At least it would have been if our parents hadn't been there watching the movie and fireworks with us. As our moms kissed our dads, Josh and I stood there and awkwardly hugged as midnight struck. It was going to be our first kiss, but.... yeah. You get the idea.

So six hours later as I was about to board a plane to visit my friends in Utah, Josh walked me to the gate (yes, you could still do that back then) and there I let him kiss me. He'll tell you I kissed him, but I was very aware of letting him be the man of the hour.

I will always associate the movie we watched that night with our first kiss.

Godzilla

See? You kinda needed the story to understand why a sub-standard movie like Godzilla would make me think of kissing my husband. The acting was mediocre, at best. The plot was fairly predictable, after all there have already been about 60 movies starring the monster. And I can't even tell you how many times I've watched the movie since, or if I even have. But it is a fun memory of that night.

#6 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-07-31T22:32:00.000-07:00

#6 A movie that reminds you of somewhere

Footloose

I remember that my dad got the Footloose soundtrack for his birthday in 1984. It was a vinyl record and I grew up listening to it and dancing around. I wasn't allowed to see the movie. I was in kindergarten, after all.

Seven years later my family moved to Utah. One of the first things my new friends told me was that the movie Footloose was filmed there. Just down the freeway a bit. Okay, like 60 miles, but still. I had moved to Utah with a bit of a bad attitude. I was 14 and had just moved away from my first long-term best friend (moving a million times will make long-term friends a bit hard to collect). But the thought of being able to see the mill from the movie from just off the freeway softened my heart a little.

It really didn't take long but I learned to love Utah. A large piece of my heart will always call it home. And often when I drive through American Fork I make sure I stop for gas at the Phillips 66 station across the street from the ever-famous mill.

I thought I heard a rumor that the mill is gone now. The Phillips 66 may be too. I really don't know since I haven't gotten to stop there much over the last couple years. But American Fork, UT, reminds me of Footloose and Footloose reminds me of American Fork.

The movie itself is about a bunch of repressed hick-kids that just want to dance. That's the gist, anyway.

Here's one of my favorite scenes. I love watching the cowboy learn to dance. Although I would've been mortified if the guy I was dancing with pulled out some of his final moves in the scene.

And just in case you hadn't heard, a new version of the movie is coming out in October of this year. It'll star some dancers in the lead roles (Kenny Wormald as Ren and Julianne Hough as Ariel -- Kenny is new to me and Julianne was on Dancing With the Stars until she left for her singing career). I don't recognize a lot of names on the cast list, but Dennis Quaid plays the Reverend and Andie MacDowell plays his wife. I'll watch it even though it was filmed in Georgia instead of the now overly-populated American Fork, but I'm not sure if I'll see it in the theater. I might wait til it's in the Redbox.

A Few Comparisons

2011-07-30T22:29:00.000-07:00

I decided to interrupt my movie challenge with some photo fun I had tonight.

Which kid is which?

Okay, it's an easy one, but thought I'd share my fun.

Plus, I found these treasures too.

The one on the left was taken of me in 1998 when my BFF Cindy and I went to Disneyland together. I thought this was a silly enough picture to send to the guy from my new ward that was on a mission -- the same guy whose mom tricked me into writing her son, a man I'd never met before. Said guy received this picture and thought it was the weirdest thing to receive, but decided to give me another chance. That former missionary is on the right with two of our four children. He's trying to make the same face I did 11 years earlier. Sorry, dear. Didn't quite happen.

#5 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-07-30T21:14:00.001-07:00

#5 A movie that reminds you of someone

Have you ever met my Grampa? He's a fairly large man and even at the tender young age of 83 he still has a pretty full head of hair. He joined the Air Force as soon as he could and flew in Korea, Vietnam, and the Berlin Air Lift. He intimidated me until I was about 20. Okay, maybe not that old, but to a little kid he's a gruff man. He's lived life, literally flown all around the world, and met some very colorful characters.

My dad, me (holding Emma), Grampa, Gramma in 2001

I know this because of his many stories. Many, many stories.

I love sitting and listening to Grampa tell his stories. I wish I could go and visit him and Gramma for a couple weeks and just record their stories. The oral history is amazing, but we need it written for future generations since oral histories rarely survive these days.

The movie that reminds me of my Grampa....

Big Fish

Basically, I've just given you the premise of this movie. It's a great one. One I like to watch a couple times a year.

#4 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-07-29T14:23:00.000-07:00

#4 A movie that makes you sad.

I cry during movies. Heck, I cry during commercials. That doesn't usually mean that a movie makes me sad. But this one was an easy one to name. But it didn't start out as the saddest movie. Life just helped it evolve into it.

The Green Mile

This movie came out not long after Josh and I got married. We saw it in the theater and we loved the movie from the first time we saw it.. I'm a Tom Hanks fan, but the person that blew me away was Michael Clarke Duncan who plays John Coffey.

This cast is incredible: Tom Hanks, Michael Clarke Duncan, David Morse, Bonnie Hunt, James Cromwell, Sam Rockwell, Barry Pepper, and the list goes on. I'll admit, some of these actors I didn't know before this movie, but I've happily identified them in other movies I've seen since. Their performances are very memorable.

The plot is fantastic. And by that I mean "fantasical". John Coffey is a huge bear of a man accused of murder, yet the staff on the Green Mile (death row) discover how gentle and angelic he actually is. There are extremes of heaven and hell, angel and demon, and love and hatred.

Why does this movie make me sad?

Well, in general, it's a sad movie. That's all I'll say about that.

But there's more to it than that. The murder victims are two little blond sisters. I was okay with the movie when Emma was born. I could still watch it without identifying to it.

But then Abby was born.

Two little blond sisters.

This particular scene

kills me!

I watched the movie once after Abby was born, made the connection, and haven't been able to watch the movie since. It's too sad. And Michael Clarke Duncan should've won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. He was totally robbed. That's almost sadder than the movie itself.

#3 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-07-28T22:11:00.000-07:00

#3 A movie that makes you happy.

I'm quickly discovering that this challenge is more difficult than I thought it would be. A movie that makes me happy? I can think of lots of movies that I enjoy watching and plenty of shows that I'll happily watch again and again. But a movie that makes me happy?

I racked my brain and then it hit me. The movie that makes me happy just thinking about it (and again when I watch it)...

The First Wives Club

Now, don't judge me. Yes, the premise of this movie is that three women are looking for vengeance not only for their suicided friend (is "suicided" a word?) but for themselves as their ex-husbands run off with younger women.

How can that make me happy?

Lots of reasons. First, I love girl-power. The women overcome their sadness and rise above it. Great story.

Second, the music is phenomenal. 1960s girl groups. That makes me happy.

But mostly, I love the characters and their hilarious one-liners. I may not understand the circumstances they experience, but I recognize the characters/people. I'm personal friends with some of the characters.

My favorite (surprise, surprise) is Elise, the actress. "You think that because I'm a movie star I don't have feelings. Well you're wrong. I'm an actress. I've got all of them!" Classic.

But there will always be a special place in my heart for Shelly. Shelly the Barracuda. ("She's 12.")

I love watching this movie and it definitely makes me happy.

#2 30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-07-27T22:22:00.001-07:00

Your Least Favorite Movie

For me, this one is a no brainer. In fact, I could say I HATE this movie.

Crash

This movie came out on video during my last semester of my senior year of college. I had just spent four years paying tens of thousands of dollars to an institution that tried to convince me the power of "thinking outside the box." However, it was at this point in time I discovered that some professors insist that I think outside my box and inside theirs. I wasn't falling for that one.

In one of my classes a few people were talking about the power of the movie Crash. Between my classmates and written reviews, this movie was supposed to be a profound dissection of American morality and racism.

First off, the number of F-bombs through the show are enough to turn me off. I almost stopped watching it, but I was waiting for the profound-ness to start.

Should've just turned it off.

Second, the A-list actors made it a temptation. See the movie cover above for names.

Third, the movie revolves around racism and prejudice. Everyone hates everyone else and all are afraid of the others. There's supposed to be an underlying message of "progress" according to Roger Ebert. I didn't see it. I walked away from the movie thinking of those boxes my professors wanted me to hop into. And I couldn't stop hearing the voice of this one professor in particular that cultivated class discussions about white people and their overpowering racist ways. I hated his class.

I hated the movie. I found it over the top, without hope, completely overrated (Best Picture of the Year??? Puh-lease!!), and a complete disappointment. Never see it. Totally a waste of my time.

30 Day Movie Challenge

2011-07-26T23:05:00.002-07:00

My friend Jim is doing this 30 Day Movie Challenge on Facebook. I've been fascinated by his reported movies each day. In fact, I really look forward to seeing what he's posted (the day cannot end without finding out Jim's movie of the day).

So I asked him to email me a copy of his list so I could play too. But as I love to talk about movies, I need more than the 420 characters I'm allowed to use on Facebook. And it's been a long time since I've blogged everyday, maybe this will get me back into the habit.

Day 1: Your Favorite Movie

This is a tough one. At first I couldn't even think of my favorites (what kind of movie lover am I???) but then I thought of so many that I had a hard time narrowing it down.

I think my favorite movie changes based on my phase in life. But one movie that I have absolutely loved since the very first time I saw it (and later read the book and later bought the trivia game that no one could beat me at) was Gone With the Wind.

To watch Scarlet O'Hara and Rhett Butler stupidly ruin everything for themselves just kills me. But I can't stop watching. The epic magnitude of the movie is amazing, especially considering the limited resources Hollywood had in 1939 compared to today. Of course, the only way this movie could have been so epic if it was made today is if Peter Jackson (Lord of the Rings) was the director. However, who he could cast to rival Vivien Leigh and Clark Gable is a mystery to me. Although, Carol Burnett and Harvey Korman come pretty darn close.

"Went With the Wind" from The Carol Burnett Show (Part of 2) - watch more funny videos

Matt's Update

2011-07-19T15:20:00.000-07:00

Matt's MRI was yesterday and everything went relatively well.

First off, we went to my folks' house for the weekend. My brother Peter and his wife and son had come down from Utah to visit and we wanted to see them one more time before they left. Sunday night Matt told Uncle Pete that he wanted to practice being very still for his MRI. So Pete timed him.

One minute of laying perfectly still.

Two minutes of laying perfectly still.

Finally, Matt laid perfectly still with his cousin's Boppy pillow over him as the MRI for three minutes.

Uncle Pete helping Matt practice for the MRI.

We left for the MRI a bit late but discovered that even with Monday morning traffic heading into Phoenix, the Phoenix Children's Hospital was only about an hour away from home.

We checked in and Matt was immediately taken back for his chest x-ray. Then we walked across the hospital for the MRI. We had our own private waiting area. The room had a TV, scales, vitals machines, books, toys, and a very cold air conditioning system. We sat and waited for our turn, but there was a little girl on the MRI machine already.

We waited some more for our turn. The nurse came in and took Matt's vitals (it was nice having all the machines in the room with us so we didn't have to do a bunch of walking around the hospital). We asked her if Matt could do the MRI without anesthesia since he'd practiced. But she and the doctor kindly explained that he's too young to stay awake. He was fine with that and so we were too. Then we waited some more.

Then the doctor came in to tell us that of the two machines they have, only one was working. And that working machine had just broken down. We kind of laughed about it since Matt's only other MRI was taken in Denver and the machine had broken down right before Matt's appointment. We had had to reschedule for the next day because you can't keep a 2-year-old hungry for that long. We silently prayed that the machine would start working again so we could just get this thing over with.

We waited some more.

Finally, around noon we were told that the machine was up and running and Matt would be taken back within about 30 minutes. What seemed about 60 minutes later, Matt went back, laid on the table for the MRI and used his practice for laying still as he breathed in his "sleepy medicine" from his mask and quickly rolled his eyes back and feel asleep.

About an hour later the doctor came back with some initial news on the results of the test. Matt's valve leakage is moderate, but that's been the case for the last couple years. The walls of his right ventricle are thickening due to pumping so hard to offset the leakage, but that issue is mild/moderate. There's no blockage anywhere and that is the point that would determine immediate surgery. Overall, Matt's check up was good. His cardiologist is on vacation for a week or so, but the MRI doctor said there's no immediate need for us to consult with him. In the next two weeks we'll get a call to come in a see the cardiologist and go over the official results.

We went back to see Matt and he sleepily told us that if he'd taken one more breath in that mask that he would've fallen asleep. Then he asked what we were doing there because he needed to go into the machine for his pictures. He looked up and behind his hospital bed and a major look of SHOCK hit his face as he realized he was in a different room. We had to explain to him that he was done already. It was cute.

The best part was knowing Matt doesn't need his next surgery for a while. But nearly as wonderful as that was feeling the peace and comfort that prayers given on our behalf brought. I don't know that I can even explain how much easier it was to endure the appointment feeling the power of prayer. But I do want to offer a sincere Thank You to everyone that thought of us and prayed for us over the last few weeks.

Our tradition with Matt is that after his appointments we do something with him. Usually it's just lunch, but with the bigger and more involved appointments we've done something a little more.... like the Denver Zoo or the Museum of Natural History. So Josh figured out a plan.

Matt got to ride to see the movie Transformers 3 in Bumblebee himself.

It was cool!

Josh took a picture of Matt next to Bumblebee, but it didn't save, so here's what Bumblebee looks like:

Matt was excited!!

Matt inside Bumblebee (with our friend Rebekah)

It was great to be with Matt and even greater to get good news from the doctor, despite freezing to death in our waiting room as we spent hours waiting for the MRI.

Thank you again for all your thoughts and prayers!!

Another Talk

2011-07-15T22:55:00.000-07:00

I hate it when plans change. If I'm planning on something, I expect to do it.

Because of that logic, I often don't tell the kids what we're doing until right before we do it. We've had past instances when they were told what they were going to do but then things changed and we had to deal with sad kids. I hate that.

Now that's a habit I have. I don't tell the kids what our plans are until right before we leave to do them. Problem is, I forgot I hadn't told the kids about Matt's MRI on Monday. So when I casually mentioned it tonight, it brought up a long conversation between Matt and me.

Matt and I had another talk about his pulmonary atresia. It's the second one of its kind. Go HERE for the first time we had this talk. Matt remembered quite a bit about what his condition is, but at first he was afraid he'd have to go directly to surgery after his MRI. My poor baby.

We talked about his upcoming surgery. He cried when he said he doesn't want another bovine valve. He just wants to be "like normal." He also told me that he's scared. I decided to be honest and tell him that I am too. But he has good doctors that are looking out for him and, more importantly, lots of people are praying for him, including his daddy and me. And he can pray for himself too.

Matt was still a bit scared and said, "Now I'm old enough to know how to die. When you pray for me, will you pray that if I die during surgery that I die without pain?"

{Enter Tears stage left}

I honestly can't remember what was talked about after that point. I know there were hugs and reassurances. He went upstairs to bed with a smile on his face. He felt better and I felt.... well.... something. It's hard to describe.

This whole thing is weighing heavily on my heart and mind. The hospital called this morning to pre-register him and give us an idea of what our out-of-pocket expenses will be. The MRI alone will cost more than Matt's last surgery cost us in total. If he needs a surgery soon, I have no idea how much that will cost us. There's so much stress emotionally, financially, and physically.

One of the hardest parts is knowing that I did this. I allowed him to have the surgery that spurred the rest of the surgeries throughout his life. Really, Josh and I sat down with the doctor and went over all of the facts carefully and concisely and agreed that the surgery was going to be the best thing for Matt. But Mommy-guilt knows no rationality.

We'll see what happens on Monday. Actually, it may be a week or two until we find out how the MRI goes. He's not in an emergent state, so we'll have our regular check up with his cardiologist and talk to him about the results at that point in time.

I knew parenthood would be difficult, I just didn't know what "difficult" meant.

Looking For Support

2011-07-07T23:29:00.000-07:00

In 12 days Matt goes in for a cardio MRI.

This is a bit of a big deal. I've thought about it everyday since it was scheduled a couple weeks ago. The last time Matt had a cardio MRI, it was the final step needed for him to be approved for his valve replacement surgery. Just the fact that we're scheduled for this tells me that we're getting much closer to the dreaded "next surgery."

I use this blog to talk about this every so often... about twice a year when his check ups with the cardiologist come due. But I was looking for an online group or a blog or something similar where I could read others' stories and talk about my own because I'm sure I'm part of a community of mothers that I don't even know about. The trouble is finding them.

There are lots of great groups out there. My friend Tara has begun a blog called Kidz for parents of special needs children. It's a wonderful group and she's become quite an advocate for special needs kids.

But I truly don't know if Matt qualifies as "special needs". He has very few physical limits (contact sports may be out of his future, but he doesn't seem that interested in them so that may not be a big deal) and he's growing fine and independent (he made his own quesadilla for lunch today). It seems selfish to thrust myself into a community of parents with so much more weighing on their hearts than I do. It reminds me of the experience in the NICU when Matt was born. Here was this 8 lb baby surrounded by babies born as small as 2 or even 1 lb. We didn't fit in, although we belonged there.

That's how I feel about so many of the supportive groups I've found online. We don't fit in, but we belong somewhere.

Maybe it's time I start my own. Maybe a group for parents with kids with heart defects. Maybe a group for parents that have experienced their babies having surgery.

What do you think?

Line Upon Line

2011-07-03T23:48:00.000-07:00

Today was the second week in our newly established ward. We have a great bishop and I'm looking forward to getting to know him better. His wife is incredible. Easily one of the nicest people I've ever met. The only callings so far have been to people in leadership positions. The rest of us are filling in by taking over our previous callings until told otherwise. There's plenty of chaos, but we're all managing.

I've been asked to fill in as the Nursery leader. There is no secret that this is not the easiest place for me to serve. Adults = easy. Youth = iffy. Children = hesitant. Babies = fear. I've been doing this for nearly a year now. I was so excited to hear about the ward split. Obviously we were heading toward the new ward and there would be plenty of opportunities to serve beyond the Nursery. I even went out and purchased a couple April Conference issues of the Ensign in anticipation of fourth Sunday lessons (of course our Ensign subscription lapsed right before that issue came out and I'm a procrastinator). I've been looking forward to winds of change.

Today I had gone down the hall for a second to run something by the new Primary president and I ran into our new bishop in the hallway. I told him I needed some keys, the toy chests all have padlocks on them and they were all locked today. We made do, but we'd need the key in the future. Bishop told me he had a key for me, but he got stopped by someone else and I told him I'd get it from him later.

Later came when I was taking a child to her mother (dirty diaper) and ran into Bishop again. He suddenly remembered the key. So we walked together toward his office. I told him I knew I'd get it from him sometime, the poor guy was like a chicken with his head cut off. Everyone needed him and I'm sure the mantle of Bishop is a heavy one even when you're not organizing a new ward from scratch. He asked if it was that obvious. I told him I thought he was handling it all very well. He told me that he saw all of us running the classrooms and thought we were all handling things very well.

The Lord works "line upon line, precept upon precept; here a little, and there a little (D&C 128:21). My conversation with the Bishop was a line.

The second line hit me tonight when I read a blog post shared on Facebook by my friend Ana. It talked about the story of Naaman. Naaman was a leper and the prophet Elisha told him to go wash in the Jordan River seven times and he'd be healed. He was reluctant at first (how could a dirty river cleanse him?) but he did it. It was a simple act but he had expected to need to do something different. Something grander.

This blog post relates Naaman to the writer's expectations of motherhood (see the link above for the article, definitely worth reading). She had expected something different. And although I could easily go on about my own interpretation of that, the post hit me in a different way. My opportunity to serve in the church.

Between talking with the Bishop and reading about Naaman, I've learned something. It's not what I do. It's my attitude as I do it.

I have been expecting something different. I expect my church attendance to fulfill my spiritual needs. And to an extent, it should. However, what am I doing between 5pm on Sunday afternoon when I leave the church building and 2pm the following Sunday when I report again? Am I giving myself the opportunity to grow and learn spiritually in the peace and safety of my own home? Am I living my life so my time spent at church is a supplement to my own efforts, or is it the only time I devote to my Savior?

I have been waiting for a new calling so I can finally have adult interaction and socialization at church, stimulating lessons and discussions that keep my mind sharp, and a spiritual renewal that's kind of hard to experience when you're trying to keep 3-year-olds from climbing on the tables.

It's my calling's fault that I don't feel connected to my spirituality.

Right?

The Bishop was right. So many people in our ward are handling the chaos well. They are doing what they should. Not because they were asked to, but because they know it's the right thing to do.

Where do I fit in?

I've let myself become bitter and unwilling.

It's my attitude that needs to be adjusted. There's a good chance I'll be staying in the Nursery for a while longer. I'm experienced and I take charge. So how will I take the news if I'm asked to stay in the Nursery?

I realized tonight (line upon line) that I'll do it happily. Those little kids (as much as they make me crazy after two hours of wrangling them) are beautiful. One boy said to Josh last week, "You love me, I know you do." Yes, you sweet boy. How can we not?

If I get my personal study back on track (it's been lacking quite a bit lately) and some other goals for our family completed, then church will once again be a supplement. And maybe even a sanctuary. Not the quiet kind with lots of meditating. I mean, have you ever meditated with 20 toddler/preschoolers around you? But if I can zone in on the innocence of the children and follow their examples to "becometh as a child" (Mosiah 3:19), I can find the sanctuary I need -- an escape from the world.

"Josh, Where Are Your Shoes?"

2011-07-01T18:02:00.001-07:00

We had some great fun out on the lake the other day. It definitely was something we'll do again.

I thought I'd show off our pictures in a movie.

We loved going out and playing in the water. We went out on the tube (the pictures at the end) and while Josh and Matt were out, Josh thought he'd show Matt how to be a little daring. Josh laid on his belly and pretended to be Superman. He sat up and bounced up and down. He even hung his feet off the side and into the water.

And then .... oops.

It was immediately after that that we began the search for Josh's sandals because they had slid off his feet and drifted away somewhere into the lake. Throughout the afternoon I had a little fun at his expense by asking, "Honey, where are your shoes?"

I learned something, though. I want a boat. I grew up under the impression that only the dads drove boats. Only my grampa drove his boat. And only my dad drives his boat. No girls allowed. But that's not the way it has to be. I even got a bit of a driving lesson and taught some tricks of the trade so someday when we get a boat I won't be completely clueless.

I can see it now. We'll all have fun on the boat while we're laughing (my cheeks ended up hurting from laughing so much), tubing, swimming next to the boat, looking for Josh's lost shoes..... it'll be a wonderful time.

Now, to suddenly get rich.....

Oh Thank Heaven, My Boy is Seven!

2011-06-30T00:58:00.000-07:00

Today (well, technically yesterday) was Matt's birthday.

We started out with some presents.

We went to the lake.

We had cake.

And got home and the kids went to bed about fifteen minutes before the official end of Matt's birthday.

Easiest tuck-in job. Ever. They were all asleep before I turned off their lights.

It was a good day.

Happy birthday, Cute Boy!!

The Extreme Comparison

2011-06-27T13:40:00.001-07:00

Sometimes I have to wonder:

Why do I live in the Arizona desert?

It's a valid question. At this moment, it is 108* and will most likely climb to 111* in the next few hours.

That's hot.

But, really, we are no crazier living in Arizona than we were when we lived in Montana or Colorado. They were just the other extreme.

Arizona Summer        Montana Winter
Highs: 110 days above 100*F      Lows: 158 days below 32*F
A/C bill raises                              Heater bill raises
Water and sunscreen necessary     Coats, gloves, hats necessary
Too hot to play outside                  Too cold to play outside
Ice is in constant demand               Hot cocoa is in constant demand

I've heard the argument that cold is better because you can always add more layers, but in the heat there are only so many layers you can remove without getting arrested. There is definitely some merit in that train of thought.

But, I think I prefer the heat. In Arizona summer or Montana winter, you end up being sequestered in your home with a dread to go outside. But in Arizona I never have to worry about the added bummer of driving in the snow and ice.

Which do you prefer?

Summertime Recipes

2011-06-27T11:27:00.000-07:00

I definitely don't consider myself a gourmet chef, by any means. But lately I've had some good luck with some meal ideas. Of course, the fact that Josh is a creative genius that likes to cook helps a bit.

So here are two of the requested recipes I've used over the last couple weeks.

Camping Calzones

We used the propane stove to give us a little more control over the heat. Plus, there are lots of fire bans this year, and a campfire isn't guaranteed, so stove cooking isn't so bad after all.

We used:

2 Pillsbury thin pizza crusts
1 jar sauce (we just used marinara since that's what we had in our pantry)
Mozzarella cheese
Provolone cheese (leftover from our sandwiches and they made them extra cheesy)
Pepperoni and other toppings

Spread out your thin crust (they are way easy to handle) and cut it into fourths. On half of each fourth, layer your sauce, cheese, and whatever other toppings you want to use. Try to stay away from the edges since this can make sealing the calzone tricky. Fold the clean side of the dough on top of the sauce and cheese and pinch around the edges to seal it. Cook in a lightly greased frying pan over the stove, covering if possible. Play with the heat, about medium to medium high. Our first two calzones were cooked on high and burned quickly.

Watermelon Salsa

What I used:
3 kiwis, peeled and diced
1 to 1 1/2 cups diced watermelon
1/3 cup chopped red onion
1 tbsp chopped cilantro
half a jalapeno, minced
1 to 2 tsp lime juice
salt to taste

Just throw it together and get ready for some sweet deliciousness. Keep it refrigerated in an airtight bowl for up to a day.

Happy cooking!

Abby's Update

2011-06-07T22:24:00.000-07:00

It was Abby's birthday a few weeks ago. Yep, I'm such a good mother that I'm that slow in posting pictures.

First of all, at the Come-see-what-we've-been-doing night at school, Abby got to dress up like the person she did a biography book report on. Her person was Sacajawea.

Doesn't she make a pretty little Sacajawea?

The day before Abby's birthday we headed to Ajo to visit my parents. They had a ward talent show with a performance of their road show they did for their stake. (It just occurred to me that there is a lot of LDS culturalism in that sentence. So, translation for any non-Mormons reading this: the Mormons in their community had a talent show and they also performed a skit they wrote and performed for other people in their region.)

The road show was cute and we stayed around to help clean up a bit. It was kind of fun to be in a ward that could set up tables in one of the overflow rooms and have that be a sufficient area to hold people.

Abby posed with the clothes she got from her Poppy (Josh's dad) for her birthday.

We stayed the night and the next morning we let her open her present in the morning. She was happy.

We went swimming in the pool. I have no pictures of that. I know, major disappointment that you can't see me in my swimming suit. I guess you'll just have to dream.

Abby wanted a Rapunzel ice cream cake. I originally went to Baskin Robbins to order one. It was going to cost over $50. After I left the store laughing at the absurdity of the price, I went and bought ingredients to make it myself. It wasn't too bad. And it cost WAY less than $50. Even with the Rapunzel doll I bought as the cake topper. It definitely isn't the prettiest or most creative cake I've made, but it did taste good.

For about six weeks the girls' ages were 10 and 8. It's kind of weird to have it sound like they are 2 years apart, since they are only 13 months apart. But now they are 10 and 9 and the world is right yet again.

Young Would Make Me Restless

2011-06-05T02:03:00.000-07:00

I've already posted our camping trip pictures. They are cute. You should check them out. You can go Here or just scroll down.

Here's some of our post-camping adventure.

It didn't take long for us to get to our camp area but the last 20 miles were spent mostly on a dirt road. Because we were only another 20 miles from the community of Young, we decided to drive through it on our way home and check it out.... we're always on the look out for where we may want to live after Josh finishes school.

We drove along the dirt road and barely avoided the few oncoming vehicles as they came toward us on the narrow roads with the very soft shoulders. I was relieved when we hit pavement, came off of the mountain and saw the little town plotted out in front of us. The first building we saw was the Young Public School. It was obvious that the town was small enough for a K thru 12 school.

We came across the homes comfortably spaced apart from each other and it all revealed a very Mayberry-esque community. There were only a few sparsely placed businesses and a small LDS chapel. The town was surrounded by the towering pines and mountains.

Young, AZ Post Office

It just seemed so...... lovely.

There really wasn't anywhere to stop, so we continued to drive through the town. We followed the highway through town and headed toward Payson. I figured that anyone in town would just jot over to Payson for any of their shopping or entertainment needs. It's about 60 miles, but if you can go about 60 mph, it won't take too long to get there.

We drove a few miles out of town and found a surprise. Another dirt road. About 15 miles of loose, windy, mountainous dirt roads.

There is no paved road to get to Young, AZ.

I'm thinking we'll have to keep looking for that perfect town to end up in.

The Great Outdoors

2011-06-04T23:15:00.000-07:00

We officially kicked off our summer this week. The kids got out of school last week and Josh had the end of this week off from work, so we took advantage of the situation and hit the road.

Our family hasn't been camping in a while. And we've never been out with just our little family. But, our family loves ADVENTURE!! So we took off and searched for our haven away from home.

We stayed in our brand new three room tent. Josh and I slept in the middle room. Josh bought an air mattress for the father/son campout last month. And I love that he did. For the first time, my back didn't want to kill me after a night in the woods. Hooray!

Matt and Millie shared one of the side rooms and Emma and Abby took the other side room. It was a great tent.

This picture was originally centered, but I was trying to get Millie in the pictures and she was trying to run away so the camera followed her.

Josh had called ahead to the rangers' station to find out if there was a fire ban. He was told that the fires had to stay within the rims provided for the fires, so we got the fire a-flamin'.

We also set up a few outdoor games for the kids to play. I can't remember what this one is called. Josh called it golf. I called it The Game.

We also played lots of card games. Our current favorite is Skip-Bo. We also played Mancala (the game with the marbles). Even the kids got into that one.

We decided to go hiking and found this cute little stream.

Emma

Abby

Matt

Millie

We also found a big rock, perfect for sitting.

Then we found the real waterfall. 180 feet high.

Josh has told me before that girls baffle him. That was kind of obvious when we got married (I love you, dear). But until a year or so ago, I didn't realize that his befuddlement includes our own daughters. Josh has three brothers and one sister. She's ten years younger than him and so he never really interacted with her. So our daughters are a bit of an enigma.

This trip gave Josh the chance to bond a little more with Emma. She wanted to build a fairy house for fairies living in the woods. So, she and Josh found the materials in the trees near our campsite and built this really cool fairy house.

This fairy house is made completely from sticks, ferns, and leaves. Everything a fairy would want her home built out of.

Millie loved being outside. She grabbed handfuls of dirt and placed (read: threw) it anywhere she thought dirt needed to be. She ran in circles and sang at the top of her lungs. We had a butterfly that kept fluttering through out camp. It was a big orange one and everyone loved it. Millie would chase it and yell, "I ya you, bu'erf'y!" That translates to: I love you, butterfly. However, when Millie got tired, she hit a wall. Hard. I think her wailing alone kept any wild animal at least a mile away. At one point, I was going to clean her face (the girl was a constant dirt pile) and she looked at me coming at her with the wipe and yelled NO! and tried to run into the woods. She seriously took off to the trees. Hello? Not even Bambi would let her hang out with that messy face.

One-shoed-Millie playing in the dirt.

Fun candids:

One thing Josh and I loved doing was creating a new and exciting menu. We were only gone for two nights, but we didn't want to just roast hot dogs both nights. Although we roasted weenies the first night, we also made campfire nachos. The second night we made calzones. Yeah. We went camping where there wasn't even a porta-potty and still had freshly made calzones for dinner. Call us the coolest parents ever.

Now that we've been out once this summer, we'll happily go again. We've got all the supplies we need. We know a decent place to go (although we wouldn't mind checking out a few different places). And everyone had fun.

Not a bad way to spend a weekend.

The Story of Emma

2011-05-19T23:13:00.000-07:00

We have had a great ending to the school year. We've got one week left and I don't know if my homework-hating heart will make it.

Emma had her final band concert for the year. I tried to get a picture of her, but all I could see was the top of her pretty little head.

Emma's band teacher encouraged the class to listen to a song and try to play it. One of Emma's favorite songs (thanks to her Mema) is "You Are My Sunshine." Emma played it by ear for her teacher and her teacher found the sheet music for Emma to play as a solo at the concert.

I recorded it, but Millie was acting up. You can hear her fussing, me telling her to be quiet and then there's a section of video where I'm trying to take the fussy child off my hip and set her on the ground. This really makes trying to create a nice video difficult, especially when you're just holding the camera in your hand.

But enjoy the music.

Emma also made her own trifold highlighting her poetry. She asked me to take a picture of it and post it because she did it all by herself. With no help from me. She's very proud of herself.

APRIL

by Emma

April is blooming rainbow,

The color of everything. It’s all colors.

It sounds like birds chirping to wake the sun.

It smells like fresh grass, rain drops, and sweet flowers.

April tastes like fruit. Spring fruit.

April feels like sun on your face after winter’s darkness.

Pictures and Stories

2011-05-15T22:15:00.001-07:00

Extra! Extra! Read all about it!

Millie has begun to require a gate to keep her in her room after bedtime. When the gate doesn't go up, Millie begins to wander. The other morning I found her here on the bottom three stairs. She actually looked kind of comfortable.

Emma was one of two 4th graders invited to play in the 5th Grade Honor Band. They did a great job and she'll be playing her clarinet again next year. Meanwhile, Abby heard the band play and was so impressed that she's decided to play the flute next year.

Millie will often hand me the camera and say, "Cheese!" Then she'll pose with some random object and expect me to Ansel Adams her. Do you think this photo will be worth $20,000 someday?

The other day Josh brought me home some flowers just because. He's a good man.

Friday night we got to watch my sister graduate from college. She's planning to attend NAU's extended campus classes to continue her education. She's been working hard.

We went to Wildlife Worlds Zoo this weekend. The exhibits are very open and give you a close, intimate feeling to the animals. When you're this close to a rhino, it's no wonder you feel a bit close to them.

Nearly everyone got to go up and visit the giraffes. Here is my dad on the left, my sister Tara on the right, and Millie on the rails. Abby said she fed the giraffe and she touched its tongue. She said, "It was slimy!"

Emma had a science fair a while ago. This photo was on my phone and I just downloaded it. She did a great job.

After Emma's band concert last week we stopped by Baskin Robbins. It happened to be Tuesday night so scoops were a dollar. Millie needed some help getting the last of her ice cream out of her dish.

Abby's choir got to sing for the school board a couple of times this year. She's sitting in the back row with the white bow in her hair. This is another older picture from my phone. She had a lot of fun in choir this year and plans to do it again next year.

Matt didn't make it in any of these pictures. Not sure how that happened. So, here's a funny story.

The other night I told Matt to use the bathroom before getting into bed. I asked him what was taking so long and he said, "Mom, the machine isn't working." I guess he didn't have to go after all.

Dual Holiday

2011-05-08T23:26:00.000-07:00

Today is Mothers Day. It's also our 12th anniversary.

This is the first time we've had this double celebration. The first time it would've happened had been a leap year.

I thought I'd do something special for Josh since it's our Dozen Anniversary. He and Matt were gone Friday night at the father/son campout so the girls and I set up an elaborate activity for him to come home to.

I borrowed my brother-in-law's gps for geocaching and located six of the geocaches in our neighborhood. We then left a note in each cache for Josh to find.

The notes contained dates that I consider "perfect" days in my life. Dates like: December 19, 1998, the day we met; February 14, 1999, our first date; etc. Each note also had the coordinates for the next cache site.

In the end, Josh was led back home where he found his new grill (one side with propane, the other for charcoal) and the final note with pictures of our children saying I look forward to an eternity of perfect days with him. I think I was allowed to be cheesy at the end since I was such a genius for the rest of it.

It really was fun to do and plan.

And because Josh got such an incredible grill for our anniversary, I got a wonderful gourmet dinner tonight for Mothers Day.

A happy man and his new grill

That's right. I went through all those hours of planning, strategies, and searching for tiny pill bottles hidden in the rockscape of our neighborhood so I could get a nice bbq chicken tonight.

Josh grilling corn on the cob

And it was worth it.

Happy anniversary to my best friend. And Happy Mothers Day to all of the moms I know and love.

Spirit Week

2011-05-05T11:14:00.000-07:00

Last week was the real spirit week at school for the kids. We didn't look quite so out of place on the way to the bus stop this time.

Monday was

Book Character Day

We had Harry Potter

A grumpy Hermione Granger (Abby purposely was trying to be an overly serious Hermione)

And Jim Hawkins from Treasure Island. I asked Matt if he wanted to be Long John Silver and he said, "No way! He's freaky."

Of course, Millie needed to be in the picture too.

Tuesday was Crazy Hair Day. I forgot to get the pictures that day. But I can tell you that it included messy buns, french braids, lightning bolts, and hair colors (blue, black, white, pink, purple, and gold). You would've loved to see it.

Wednesday was Career Day. No pictures. It was kind of our throw away day. The kids just made something up the morning of. Matt probably had the most thought-out costume. "An Army guy." I had to tell Matt that he probably can't really be an army guy because of his heart, but if he grows up to be a doctor or nurse maybe he can work in civil service and help the army guys. He liked that idea. Heck yes. Let's get a doctor or another nurse in the family!

Thursday was

Rock Star Day

Pictures!

Emma went for more of a punk approach.

Abby wanted a laid-back sweatsuit rocker look. Maybe more of a rapper? Not quite sure.

Matt wanted to be Elvis. He had the curl of hair on his forehead and the sideburns. I told him to curl his lip and this is what he was able to give me. I about fell over laughing when the kids got on the bus and Abby told the bus driver that Matt was Elvis. Matt stepped up the stairs of the bus, paused and did this groovy point and lip curl move at the bus driver. I should've taught him to say, "Thank you, thank you very much!"

And what rockers are complete without a groupie?

Somehow our house comes alive during dress up weeks.

Easter 2011

2011-05-05T10:43:00.000-07:00

I'm a bit late getting my blog updated. We've had a rough couple of weeks.

Anywhoo....

The Easter Bunny came.

He made a lovely mess that the kids happily indulged in.

Josh's mom sent some bunny ears for the kids. I was having troubles getting just the right shot of them.....

We had a nice Easter and even got to spend time with some of our extended family at my cousin's house. Of course, I forgot the camera for that. Duh. Maybe next year.

Whims...

2011-04-24T21:18:00.000-07:00

I live by the motto, "Go big or go home." It's something I've always done.

Adventurous?

Maybe.

Risky?

Usually.

Fun?

Almost definitely.

A week or so ago I auditioned for a role in the community theatre's production of Annie. Anyone who knows me understands how much I want to play Miss Hannigan. Ever since I was 8 I recognized the truly greatest character of the show. Annie? No. Who cares about Tomorrow? "It's only a day away." Whoopee. Now, Miss Hannigan is a different story. A drunk wanna-be-floozy who sings about how much she hates little girls? Now that's art.

Emma had asked me to audition with her, so we took Abby along and sang our hearts out. Unfortunately, none of us were cast. Oh well. As much as I would've loved to play Miss Hannigan, I'll just wait and make my Hannigan debut on Broadway instead of community theatre.

But we went on a whim and took the risk. We were in near fits of impatience waiting for the cast list to post, but otherwise it was fun to just go out and do something a bit unexpected. I especially loved that my girls were so willing to do this with me.

I find a bit of a delight to go and do the unexpected. It clears my head. Like a restart.

So my last whim sent me to the beauty salon. Okay, it was only Great Clips. But I told the girl I wanted something dramatic. Something short. I got a short cut, a bit shorter than I expected, but I still like it. It helps me feel renewed.

Lately, I've noticed some changes in my physique. That's what working out five days a week will do for you, I guess. And today I wore a shirt I bought six years ago knowing it was too small for me, but hoped I could get away with it. Today I finally got away with it.

Between the haircut and my new-old clothes, I'm feeling a bit.... whimsical.

I enjoy my whims. They help me make sure my feet aren't too heavily grounded.

Mother of the Year

2011-04-18T11:59:00.001-07:00

It's only April, but I know I've already proven that I am a contender for Mother of the Year.

Let me state my case:

Last Monday the kids brought home a flyer explaining all the fun things they'd be able to do for Spirit Week at school. This is especially exciting because the kids' school is a traditional school, meaning uniforms and everything. So to have the opportunity to dress up, wear something other than slacks and polos, and have a week of letting a little loose is going to be fun.

Our prep work began last night. Abby wanted to dress up as Hermione (from Harry Potter) so we gave her some French braids last night so her hair would be nice and unmanageable. The other kids gathered their supplies and costumes.

We had fun this morning getting ready. Emma wanted to be Harry Potter (she's on Book 5 -- she started Book 1 this fall) so she wore my old graduation gown, we sprayed her hair black, drew a lightning bolt scar, and wore her glasses. Abby had her run-away hair and wore Josh's old graduation gown (pinned so it wouldn't drown her). Each girl used a drumstick from Millie's little drumset as their wand. Matt decided to take a different route. One of his favorite books is "Treasure Island." Matt wanted to be Jim Hawkins. He had a ripped white t-shirt and frayed-edged shorts with a red bandanna around his head. Man, they all looked great!

So, how am I the mother of the year? Because we were so awesome this morning? No. Because I forgot to take a picture before they headed off to the bus this morning? No.

I am the mother of the year because I walked them to the bus, like usual, and watched them get on the bus. Suddenly something struck me as odd. No one else was dressed up. It was at that moment that my photographic memory finally kicked in. The flyer had indeed said that Monday was "Dress as your favorite book character" day, but Monday, April 25. Today is April 18!!

I frantically yelled for my children to come off the bus, hoping the other kids wouldn't make a big deal out of our mix up, and we rushed home to change into the proper clothing. Emma had the added challenge of having to take a shower to get the black out of her hair. We quickly drove to school and only arrived about 3 minutes late.

I don't know if the kids will get teased for our mistake today. I really, really hope not. But I can tell you that they'll look incredible next week.

So that's my nomination. Why I deserve to be the Mother of the Year. I'm not sure if there are any other ways to embarrass your kids more than that.

But please, if you can top me, please do. I'm in need of some thing/one to laugh at/with!!

Ode to a 10-year-old

2011-04-12T20:28:00.001-07:00

Ode to a 10-year-old

Not a kid

But not a teen

You find yourself

As a Tween

Some menus now

Will make you eat

The pricey meals

Not processed meat

Emma's first birthday celebration, about a week early.
(Her grandparents were in town but were going to be gone on her birthday.)

Admission prices

Go up as well

You're not a kid

Your cost will swell

Emma with her dad, siblings, cousins, aunt, uncle, grandparents, and great-grandma.

With double digits

Your age is graced

I see the joy

Upon your face

Emma asked me to make her a cake resembling her Littlest Pet Shop.
Not too bad, if I say so myself.

Because you think

With all this proof

That you, my friend,

Are child-proof

I was so nervous about messing up her cake that I made three of them.
This was our "Leftover" cake: leftover frosting and leftover cake.

But I have news:

There is no way

My baby girl

You'll always stay

Mom and Dad got her the Lego Harry Potter Nintendo DS game.
Happy girl!

I love you, Dear

I always will

Through good times

And times of ill

Tonight with her cousins and siblings.

Happy birthday

Sweetheart dear

I'll celebrate

With you this year

We only put candles on the Leftover Cake. The other one was too pretty.

But I can't help

But wish for you

To stay my baby

All year through

My big girl, letting me know how old she is!

Love, Mom

The Tube

2011-04-05T21:45:00.000-07:00

I've decided that when I grow up I want to be Jessica Fletcher. You know, the lady on Murder, She Wrote. I remember watching the show quite often when it was in syndication, but I watched a few episodes this afternoon as I was folding laundry.

She's awesome.

She's an older woman. She lives on the coast of Maine in a quaint house. She's an accomplished author. She runs and rides her bike everywhere. Because she's a woman and older, she's generally treated with respect, yet she can finagle her way into open murder investigation in her vicinity.

She's just plain cool.

And I can't help but share the story of Millie and the TV. We were watching something (I can't remember what) and Millie took this little Cinderella doll up the screen so she could chat with the characters in the movie. Then, for the first time, I heard Millie change her voice to pretend to be the doll talking. But if you thought Cinderella had a high, sweet voice, you were wrong. According to Millie Cinderella has a low, guttural voice. And all she says is, "Hey guys! Hey guys!"

The Talk

2011-03-31T21:42:00.000-07:00

Every Christmas (for the past two years, at least) I've tried to make a homemade gift for each kid. Last year I made them each a photo book. It was mostly pictures from birth to the present. Each book had a page or two devoted to a snapshot from each birthday, Christmas and Halloween of their lives. They each had pictures from the day they were born. And our trip to Disneyland two years ago. The big girls each had a page for their baptisms. Millie's was mostly a bunch of random snapshots since her milestones are so much fewer. And Matt had a few pages devoted to his medical history.

One page showed pictures of Matthew in the NICU. One page showed the ultrasound pictures the doctor gave us after two of Matt's balloon-cath procedures. And there was a page of pictures for both of Matt's surgeries.

Tonight Matt was looking at his book as I came to tuck him in. He was looking at the page of him in the NICU and said, "This page makes me sad because I was dying."

Hello, throat. Meet my stomach.

I explained to him that at that point, he was okay. He was being taken care of by great nurses and they were making sure he was going to be fine.

Then we began talking about his heart and he began to cry because he was afraid he'd need another surgery when he turns 12.

Gulp.

I held his hand as I explained to him that around his birthday in June we'll be getting a better picture taken of his heart so we can know better when he'll need his next surgery. It could be a couple more years, but it might be as soon as when he's seven.

With a tear in my little boy's eye, he asked me, "What will they have to do?"

That's when the ton of bricks hit me.

We've never explained to Matt exactly what is wrong with him. I've used this very blog to tell the whole world about Matt's pulmonary atresia. But it never occurred to me to tell Matt about it. Obviously he knows his heart had problems and that he's had surgery, but that's really all he's known.

So tonight I explained to him what was wrong. And how it had been fixed. And why it will need to be fixed again. I also remembered that we have a couple of videos of the balloon-caths. He wants to see them.

And then I told my little son what to expect when he has surgery. When Daddy and I will be with him, what the doctors and nurses will wear, when we'll get to see him after he wakes up.

As scary as it may seem, the conversation actually seemed to help Matt feel better. Now he knows what he's up against and what to expect.

Schoolhouse Rock was right. "Knowledge is power"!

Project Report: Fail!

2011-03-30T20:47:00.000-07:00

This week was supposed to be all about how much I love my children and how happy they make me. Notice how I didn't get past Day 1?

Why is it that the times I try even harder to be a good mother that every frustration I have with my children is magnified and multiplied?

No matter how hard I try, by the end of the day I can vividly recount all of the times I lost my temper. And I don't lose my temper very prettily.

Sometimes being a mom is really, really hard. Me no-likey.

Spotlight: Millie

2011-03-27T21:18:00.004-07:00

I thought I'd highlight my kids this week. I really missed them while they were gone and after a week of them being home, that loving nostalgia has already begun to wear off. *Sigh* Yet another tally on my Mommy Guilt Chart. So, I'm going to be proactive and look for some of my favorite things about them. Here's a little bit about my Millie Vanilli.

We watched August Rush on Saturday and I tried to sneak some video of Millie. This is pretty typical of what she does during the day. It doesn't really matter what's on TV. Millie likes to twirl in circles and sing loudly. She also likes to sing loudly in the car. Funny, most of her singing occurs when there's lots of other noises happening.... like talking, TV, arguing, or the shuffle of Sacrament cups at church.

Yep. She's pantless. That's a somewhat typical thing. I'm not sure if she's hot (it is getting a bit warmer) or if she likes the freedom. Either reason is very possible.

Millie also loves Blue's Clues. If you've ever seen the show, you've seen the host (either Steve or Joe) indicate playing Blue's Clues by putting his hands up and opening and closing his fists. Anytime anyone goes for the PS3 remote (the device we get our Netflix off of) she runs up to them, pumping open her hands and saying, "Boos Coos! Boos Coos!"

Millie played some "Fort" on Friday.

My favorite thing about Millie is her personality. Her sense of humor is coming through like fire. She loves to snuggle, hug, and kiss. She blesses strangers in the grocery store when they sneeze ("Bess oo!"). And she's more persistent than anything else. She's also begun sleeping in her Big Girl Bed and she loves it.

My Millie Marie rocks.

St Patrick's Mini-Party

2011-03-19T21:38:00.000-07:00

The kids were off at their grandparents' house over St Patty's Day.

But Josh and I were so busy with the tub that we didn't even remember it was St Pat's and forgot to wear green.

So we had a mini-celebration tonight after the kids got home. Josh's mom had sent some Irish gear for the kids to wear.

And what Irish celebration is complete without a jig?

or two....

or three....

or four?

Happy belated St Patrick's Day!

Just Plumb Stupid

2011-03-16T23:13:00.000-07:00

The last few weeks have given me the chance to learn a little about plumbing. A few weeks ago, thanks to Google, I learned how to fix my toilet so everything goes down with the first flush. You can't have that problem in a bathroom overrun by kids. It's gross and disgusting and thinking about it makes me gag.

And now we're having the bathtub adventure. Our "vacation."

I'm learning a lot. Mostly because there's nothing to distract us. The kids are gone and all we have done is the bathtub. Maybe we can sneak away to see a movie tomorrow night. Maybe.

Anyway, here are some things I've learned:

Glued pipes do not move, even if you really, really want them to.
Turning the water off and working in sweaty conditions is a bad combo.
I know what a P trap is. And it has nothing to do with urine.
Vanities are heavier than bathtubs.
I thought that, in conjunction with copper pipes, the word was "sauter" but it's "solder". Who knew?
Home Depot owns half of my soul.

And the greatest lesson I've learned:

Never, ever, ever, ever, ever replace your bathtub DIY-style. Ever. It's stupid. It sucks. It takes a lot of time and money. It will make you insane. INSANE, I TELL YOU!!

Insane.

On Vacation

2011-03-14T21:18:00.000-07:00

Josh and I have officially been on vacation for nearly 48 hours now. The kids are safe and sound with my folks. They even tried to go swimming today (but it was only in the 80s, so not quite hot enough to enjoy).

Josh and I are in the middle of our bathroom project. This means that Josh is pulling things apart and putting them back together while I sit on the floor of the bathroom and play online and keep him company. Sometimes I get to hold the flashlight, or maybe the copper pipes while he solders them.

The goal is: get this done before we run out of time. And, please, let us get to do something other than this blasted project.

I did begin a new project of my own. Josh and I are watching the American Film Institute's (AFI) Top 100 movies of all time. We started last night with number 100, Ben-Hur. I've got a new blog to help me keep track. http://afi100project.blogspot.com/ Check it out and play with me. Or just check it out.

And now back to my vacation. And maybe we'll even turn the water back on soon. Hooray for flushing toilets!

Absurd Adventure

2011-03-10T22:33:00.000-07:00

During my Theatre and English education endeavors, I spent several semesters covering the genre and ideal of "absurdity." My favorite real life experience happened when Abby was about a year old. (I think I've told this story before, but please indulge me.) She was laying on the floor in front of me and I was changing her diaper. Emma was marching in a circle around me chanting, "Marching, marching, marching, marching...." Josh had previously turned up the TV since Emma was noisily marching and Abby was fussing about needing a bum change. But then he decided to tell me something so he began yelling above the noise.

So, here I am, sitting in the middle of the floor, having this out of body experience. Abby's squirming and crying. Emma's marching and chanting. Josh is nearly yelling a story at me. The TV is blaring.

It was absurdity at its finest.

Such is life. At least, my life. I am surrounded by absurdity.

Our vacation began today. Our itinerary for these first few days has included: babysitting, end of the quarter conferences, buying out the local pharmacy to get rid of this stupid cold, and preparing to enroll our son in first grade again.

Absurdity.

However, I am very happy to report that the tub we expected to arrive next week came today. It's so good to know that we can begin work on the bathroom right away. But Josh made the good point of, "Now we have to work on it." Yep. Can't procrastinate and use the absence of the tub as an excuse.

And so we begin this absurd adventure. Tomorrow is cleaning/packing day for the kids. Josh and I will begin some of our other work as well. And we'll send the kids to my parents on Saturday. (I think I might actually miss them, which really, really surprises me.)

Adventure!

Even if it is absurd.

"For Thy Good"

2011-03-05T21:32:00.000-07:00

If thou art called to pass through tribulation....
And if thou shouldst be cast into the pit, or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; if thou be cast into the deep; if the billowing surge conspire against thee; if fierce winds become thine enemy; if the heavens gather blackness, and all the elements combine to hedge up the way; and above all, if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good. (D&C 122: 5, 7)

The above scripture goes on to say that our Savior has risen above all of these horrible things. Which is absolutely true and something to always remember. But I get stuck at the end of this passage.

"...Know thou ... that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good."

The other day I got a call from my SIL as she was worried about her little boy. The next day or so I got a call from a neighbor who needed help with her injured daughter.

As usual, this got me thinking.

Lots of crappy things have happened in our house lately. Nothing earth shattering, but crappy. As the days have gone by, the only thought that has carried me through was the upcoming vacation. We made plans to go to San Diego. It's near enough that we can get there within a few hours but far enough that we would be on vacation. Then we thought we'd do more of a stay-cation so we could save some money and get a few things like a play set for the kids in the backyard.

Then Josh cleaned the bathtub.

Yep, I'm gross and lazy. I hate cleaning the bathtub and only do it if I have to. So Josh did it. And he found what had once been a small hairline crack in the tub has become a split that may be leaking into the subflooring beneath the tub.

Now we have our vacation funds invested in the tub that is on its way from Home Depot. Our children are still being watched by my parents (thank goodness) and Josh and I hope to still find some time to see a movie and go out to dinner a few times. But that's the extent of it. The linoleum on the floor is peeling and needs to be replaced, so we might as well do it at the same time. This is going to be a long and semi-expensive fix.

This sucks. I'm not happy about it. And once, just once, I thought to myself, Why did this have to happen?

"...[To] give thee experience..."

I don't know why those wonderful women called me, but I'm glad they did. And I'm glad I could help them. The reason why I could (okay, Josh helped the neighbor's daughter, but I recruited him) was because I have some experience in this life. If someone is experiencing something crappy, I probably have a touch of empathy to share.

I think that's why we live through tough times. It teaches us so we can more readily love others. We can be on call for when one of our family members or friends needs us.

I am quickly becoming an expert on:
Kids that don't know how to control their tempers
The function of the heart
Non-existent adult teeth
Moles and poor family health histories
Repeating 1st grade
Kidney transplants
New houses that were mass produced and cheaply applianced
The daily grind of life weighing you down
The judgment of others while I try to do my job at church

And those are just the issues so far in 2011.

Really, I'm not complaining. Honestly. This was an Ah-ha moment for me. I'm still gaining experience. And that experience may suck while I'm dealing with it, but maybe someday I'll be able to do some good because of it. Maybe this crappiness won't be in vain. I hope. I really, truly do.

If You're Going to Dream, Dream Big

2011-02-18T22:46:00.000-07:00

I have dreams. Big dreams.

Dreams so big that I usually don't realize that they're kind of ridiculous. But I like to think that my flamboyant dreams are what make me so darn lovable.

I grew up with my dad constantly telling me, "Moderation in all things." "Moderation, do you know what that means?" "Use moderation, Shelly."

But my ideas are so overwhelmingly amazing! .... I think.

I've begun clipping coupons. I get 3 Sunday papers so I can have multiple coupons. That in and of itself may sound stupid. But our cupboards have never been so full. We haven't been able to have much of a food storage. In fact, we've lived pay check to pay check for years. But I don't realize it's the week of payday based on the pantry. It's like a Christmas miracle. Or a Coupon miracle as it were.

But as wonderful as our beginning food storage is, I want more from the program. I'd love to be an extreme couponer.

I actually watched this entire show on TLC several weeks ago. I sat there watching it in awe, mouth agape. Then I realized that the show was in the line up of shows highlighting bizarre human behavior, including the woman who eats couch cushions.

But saving money is not crazy or psychotic. It's helped our family a lot over the last few months. Oh, but how I wish I could save more than my record 54% at the check out register.

Another of my big dreams....

I want to run around the block. It's a big, big block. 2 miles on each leg of the block, an 8 mile perimeter. I think there are about four or so LDS wards in that area. I said to Josh the other day, "Wouldn't it be cool to run that far?"

He looked at me like I'm a freaking idiot. Or maybe just a freak. I'm still not sure about that one.

But I'll forever stick to what I know. Dreaming big is my forte. And sometimes I achieve those dreams.

However, I can't even tell you how many times I've died trying.

My Funny Valentine.... Date

2011-02-10T13:38:00.000-07:00

I wanted to plan a nice date for Josh and me to have for Valentines Day this year. I've never planned our Valentines before. Yep. 12 Valentines together and this was the first one I planned.

I decided to take him somewhere we couldn't generally go with the kids. It was pretty obvious where we could go when I heard an ad on the radio for the Body Worlds exhibit at the Arizona Science Center. This exhibit had come to Denver in 2006, just before we had our membership to the museum. It was too far away and too expensive to justify going, I thought. But Josh really wanted to go. He even considered taking his brother with him, but with school schedules it just didn't pan out.

I've been a little nervous about going to this exhibit. I wanted to go because Josh has wanted to see it for five years. But when you explain it to people, it sounds like a lesson on being a psychotic serial killer. A scientist named Gunther von Hagens discovered a way to stop the decomposition of the human body, providing a real sample of the human body that can be studied repeatedly, not just in a one time instance like a typical cadaver.

Yeah, that's where the weirdness kind of comes in. The exhibit is a display of actual human bodies that have exposed muscles, bones and organs. But to walk through it is a whole different type of experience.

I was a little nervous that my sad mood from the previous day was going to be a problem, but I had a lot of fun being with Josh and seeing the wonder of the human body. After seeing, and I mean literally seeing, how incredible the body is, no one can ever convince me that we are on this Earth by chance.

There was even a little healing that happened. While looking at the displays of fetuses (feti?) I realized how there is so much that could go wrong in a baby's development. Much more than I knew. No wonder there are such horrible things as miscarriages. So much needs to come together just right. The complexities of the body are so difficult to comprehend.

And really, the displays of the people weren't really all that creepy. And I don't do creepy very well. Quite honestly I did get a little queasy at one point of the exhibit. But I had to disconnect myself from the reality of what I was looking at. I definitely think the exhibit is not for everyone, but was still pretty amazing to see. Josh seemed to enjoy it, and that was the whole point.

Probably the most amazing thing of the whole exhibit (beyond the fascination of the complexity of life) is the fact that all of the full bodies were permanently posed. There was one called the Diver. It was a woman on the edge of a diving board. The front part of her body came over her toes as if she was about to dive, her organs and center of her body stood up straight so you could see how they all fit within her body, and the back of her looked like it was leaning backward. The only things holding her in position were her two big toes that were secured onto the diving board. There were no strings, no cases, just this technique Dr von Hagens invented called Plastination where a polymer is infused into the cells. And the exhibit didn't smell, either.

If I hadn't experienced this myself and was just reading about it, I'd probably be a little sick to my stomach. After all, I nearly fainted a few months ago when I sliced my finger. But you have to see it to truly appreciate it.

Of course, there were also displays of things like the brain, heart, lungs, intestines, artificial joints, and other such things.

It really was an amazing thing to experience.

After the museum we decided to grab some lunch before heading home. So we headed to the Hard Rock Cafe. Josh and I have both been to the Cafe before, but in different cities and with different people. So this was our first visit together. And really, I think he agreed to go because he knew I'd enjoy it and we'd just spent a few hours at the museum. It was nice of him to agree. So we sat down and noticed that the display over our table was John Lennon's jacket. Hello! Awesome!

In the menu it explained that Eric Clapton asked his favorite restaurant, Hard Rock Cafe London, to mark his preferred table with a plaque with his name on it. They said, how about a guitar instead? He agreed and the rest is history. So I had to wonder.... if Clapton comes into the London Cafe and wants his table is it something where it's always vacant in case he comes in, or will the people eating there have to move? Josh told me it's probably the second, people would be asked to move.

Then he said, "If John Lennon came in here and wanted this table, don't you think you'd move?" I laughed and told him, "No. I'd say, 'No, John Lennon's ghost! You can't have my table I was here first!'" Really, I'd probably have to be removed by the staff because I'd have fainted and fallen on the ground. Then I'd buy a Hard Rock t-shirt and have him sign it and make a million dollars on E-bay. I'm guessing.

All in all, it was a great date. We're starting to realize the importance of doing activities it wouldn't be good to do with kids whenever we can. Otherwise, we'll never do them. There's no way the kids could've come to the Body Worlds with us and the Hard Rock is a little too expensive to buy food that may or may not be eaten. I loved being with Josh and laughing with him and having conversations about things other than what the kids are doing.

I'm even more excited for our vacation next month.

Uncensored

2011-02-08T22:05:00.000-07:00

When I avidly kept a journal (and I'm ashamed to say it was many years ago), I wrote in it often. But only when I wanted to complain, vent or do some other negative writing. I've tried really hard not to let my blogging become the same thing. Who the heck cares about only the depressing things in another person's life? A sadist. That's who.

But I've had a bit of a hard day and I feel the need to whine and complain. And since this blog is the closest thing I have to a journal, here I go.

Dribble died today. He was Emma's dear little tortoise that she got for Christmas. We have some theories on what happened, none of them that bring any peace. But I'm so sad that my little girl's pet, the one she begged for for so long, wasn't able to thrive. I didn't expect to love a tortoise, but I did. I think all of us did. It's just so sad to think of him gone and not getting to see him be big enough to wander the back yard or meander over to us to be pet on the head. These are things tortoises do and we looked forward to it. Little Dribble made me happy to have a pet. Granted, he was quiet, but I didn't expect to be so taken by a pet. We already miss him so much. It makes me want to cry just thinking about him.

I'm really trying not to be an awful person, but I'm having a hard time being happy for pregnant people right now. And several of my friends are in the motherly way. I want to be pregnant. And I definitely am not. It's really crappy to realize that I should be posting the gender of my baby and possible names. I should be scrambling to find all the pinks or blues. I should be wondering where I put this baby item and why did I give that one away. But I'm not. It's been three months of disappointment. Who knows how long it will take to have another baby. Maybe another month? Doubtful. Maybe another year? Probably. I don't have much faith in getting pregnant easily. That's not how it usually happens for me. I don't know that I can go another two years of constantly aching for the child I know is coming, but won't seem to just come. I hold Millie dear because it did take so long for her to be conceived, but I just don't know if I can go through that again. So if you're reading this, and you're pregnant, know that I love you. Deep down I'm happy for you. But right now it's really deep.

And the last thing I'm upset about today is that I've eaten all the calories for the day and I really want some Oreos. Like, 20 of them. Double Stuf. And some milk. But I'm going to go to bed instead.

And this is why I generally censor myself.

My Cute Kids

2011-02-07T22:22:00.000-07:00

Today we watched Millie and Matt play together outside.

I thought it was cute how Millie is sitting in this hole the kids (cousins included) have dug. The ground in that area was level with the bricks at one point in time.

Josh thought it was cute how Millie was digging on her right side and as she brought her shovel over to put the dirt in her bucket at her left, she was spilling dirt all over herself.

He had a point. It was cute.

And, yes, that is Matthew wearing his white school uniform shirt as he is digging in the dirt. And, no, that doesn't make me a bad mother. It makes me cool. And I gave him a cookie before dinner too. Okay, that last one was a lie, but I've had a few eyebrows raised at me lately as others have questioned my ability to run things. I may be pouting, but I still ascertain that I'm cool.

Anyway.

If you need any other pictures of how cute my children are, here's one of Abby and Millie from about a week ago.

Abby needed curlers in her hair, so of course Millie did too.

Silly kids, but I do love them.

Adults-only Trip

2011-02-02T20:05:00.000-07:00

I filed our taxes yesterday. Wham, bam, thank you Uncle Sam.

Really, this year was pretty simple. It may be because I've been doing my own (and eventually Josh's) taxes since 1996. Deductions are easy to figure out. We had one W-2 and we spent all of 2010 in Arizona, so only one state to file in. Easy. Plus, Josh didn't take all of the deductions allowed to him at work, so we knew we had overpaid our taxes and we'd be getting a refund.

So..... what to do, what to do?

First, good-bye credit cards. All of them. Luckily, we have a relatively low balance of them (much less than the national average of $15,788).

So now.... what to do, what to do?

I'll tell you what the heck to do. You take your husband and go away for a few days. Why? Because the last time you did it was less than 24 hours about 45 miles away from home. The time before that was about four days with your theatre group and you had to attend seminars and performances and not even sleep in the same room as each other. And the time before that you didn't have kids.

We tried to get Josh's schedule clear for the entire week of Spring Break, but it seems that everyone else had the same idea. We were originally going to visit family in Colorado, but since Josh has to work part of Spring Break, we had to downsize our plans.

Luckily my parents have accepted the invitation for the kids to stay with them for a few days. And then Josh and I will be off.

And so now..... where to go, where to go?

I have a feeling Southern California will be accepting us and our reservations in one way or another. I know you're dying to know more information. I'll happily share it as soon as I know it myself.

Who Needs Cable???

2011-01-31T23:04:00.000-07:00

A few days ago we did the deed I've been threatening to do......

We turned off the cable!

I know. I am addicted to TV so how could I do this? Because we still have the Internet, baby!

So because of this, we can watch (most of) our prime time shows online. And we got this little thing I like to call......

Netflix!

Oh, it's a beautiful thing. We've got movies at our fingertips. Seasons of television shows at the command of our remote. And it really helps that we can stream all of these things directly from our PS-3 to our TV. I've come to learn two significant things.

1) There are lots of movies that are labeled "Romantic Comedies" that are all about infidelity. Personally, I find cheating to be NOT romantic and NOT comedic. And there are a lot of movies that use it as their premise. Sad. Sad, sad, sad. I just don't get it. I don't identify with the storylines and they don't make me laugh. You'd think it would be funny to see Meg Ryan duct tape her husband to the toilet until he realized he really loves her and not his girlfriend. Sounds funny, but the movie sucked. Sad!

2) I love crime stories. I read Nancy Drew religiously growing up. My favorite crime shows to watch on TV consisted of Blue Bloods, CSI: Miami, Criminal Minds, The Mentalist, NCIS and Law and Order: SVU. But very few of these shows can be streamed from Netflix. So, we've begun to branch out and watch new things. I've discovered the show Psych.

It's been around for about four seasons now, and it's great. I'm not sure how I missed it before. It's got kooky characters and silly jokes, but I'm really loving it. The cases are fairly easy to figure out, but they're written to be. It's really a great show and I highly recommend watching it from the first season. Granted, we're only up to the second episode of the second season, but it's been a good one.

So, so far I'm okay with our decision to get rid of the cable. We've had to make some trades. Psych for Criminal Minds and The Backyardigans for Curious George. But Millie seems okay with the new discovery of Tasha, Tyrone, Uniqua, Pablo, and Austin. In fact, she will bring me the remote after an episode has ended so I can get a new one to start for her. She's cute.

Bingo Night's Top Ten List

2011-01-28T23:40:00.000-07:00

Tonight the kids and I attended the school Bingo Night. It was good and fun for many reasons.

So here is tonight's Top Ten List.....

Top Ten Reasons Bingo Night Was Fun

10. We ordered yearbooks. I don't know exactly when yearbooks became the norm for elementary schools, but I think it's pretty genius. Not only do we get to see pictures of events from throughout the year, but I don't have to buy class photos (that only cost $5 less than the yearbook) because the yearbook will keep the photo in a bound book for us. One less picture I have to put into storage and feel guilty for not scrapping.

9. We contributed to the PTO and Student Council funds. Both benefit our kids and if I can't leave Millie behind to volunteer in the classroom or events like this one, at least we can do our part to participate in other ways.

8. Millie got to play with other little kids. There were several kids around Millie's age that were all running around in the same somewhat contained area. Luckily, it was right next to our table so I could let her go and not have to hold her on my lap against her will. She had fun and I was glad to see her happy. One little kid (about 6 months younger than Millie) fell down and Millie went to him, bent down and asked him, "You 'kay?" So cute.

7. Pizza dinner. And no dishes. This one might actually need to be higher up on the list. No dishes is a happy-dance situation.

6. We prepaid for our dinner (to get the better value) and were supposed to get a mere 6 bingo cards. But we didn't. We got 18 instead. That's right. We got to play lots of bingo for one low price.

5. We got there early enough to get a decent parking spot, minimal waiting in line for our pizza and drinks, and a good table at which to sit. I love beating the crowds.

4. Abby was very disappointed when she didn't win any of the bingo games tonight. A friend of hers was on a lucky, lucky streak and shared one of the three or four prizes that he and his dad won. I thought it was so very nice of him to share with Abby.

3. Matt's prize. The last game was a game of blackout where we used all of our remaining cards -- we were running out of time and had only been able to play one card at a time. I promised Matt that if I won on any of my cards (I was playing 7 of them) I'd let him pick the prize. He had his eye on this little pop up play tent with Lightning McQueen on it. And guess what. One of my seven cards was, indeed, a winner. And my little boy got to pick the prize he had been eyeing since the beginning of the party.

2. Indian Radio Days. One of the plays I did at ASC was about Native American issues. It was a bunch of sketches that supposedly played on the radio. I played several different characters, each with a different flare. The one from Minnesota had a wonderful accent (a good movie to see for a reference is New In Town with Renee Zellweger and Harry Connick Jr.). And all throughout the play different actors took their turn playing bingo and speaking to the audience about different Native American issues. I chose the issue of a newly opened Native American museum. I was afraid it might be boring, but my character was based on the Saturday Night Live character "Drunk Girl." Yes, my character slurred her speech, repeated herself with the phrase, "Do you want to know what?", fell off her stool in her drunken stupor, and dotted her arm with the bingo marker. Classy. But I cannot play bingo without missing her just a little bit.

1. Emma. My favorite part about tonight was watching Emma in action. Emma didn't win the election for Student Body President, but she was appointed as the Sergeant at Arms for Student Council. At the first council meeting Emma suggested they have a bake sale. So part of the activity tonight was the Student Council's Bake Sale. Emma was ecstatic and took her responsibilities very seriously. Or as seriously as a 4th-grade-girl can. She did great. The sale was a success. I'm very proud of her.

Side Effects May Include......

2011-01-25T08:26:00.000-07:00

I have been sick lately. I don't really know how it happened. It's been so long since I've been knocked down like this. It's as if my whole body has been sucking energy from wherever it can get it. And unfortunately, my brain has experienced the most suckage.

Sometimes, when I write, I try to write something along the lines of clever. Something I hope might make people chuckle. And a couple days ago I thought I had come up with a hilarious idea about psychology and a cold. All I'll say is it had something to do with the term psychosomatic, Freud's model of the psyche (id, ego, superego), and Pavlov's dogs.

Seriously, I was laughing at myself for being so incredibly clever.

However, now that the fog in my head has begun to clear, I can now tell you how glad I am that I did not actually write what I thought was so clever. If I had, I would have deserved this:

I really hope I'm back to 100% soon!

The Homework Nazi

2011-01-19T20:46:00.000-07:00

Homework at our house has been gradually dragging out more and more everyday.

Yesterday it took Matt 3 hours to do a single math worksheet and a sheet he used to write 15 spelling words three times each. That was way too long, in my opinion.

So Josh and I talked it over and decided that snack time must be significantly reduced since the kids have somehow managed to turn it into an hour long ritual. And now it's time to pull my inner-TV-addicted self for inspiration.

You may now refer to me as the Homework Nazi. I'm not sure how many times today I yelled, "No fun for you!!" But homework is now being down as a group around the kitchen table with me consistently watching over everyone. It was quicker today by at least an hour.

So, add another title to my resume.

Cacti and Rocks

2011-01-17T16:46:00.001-07:00

My BIL invited the kids and me to go out for a little hike and picnic today. We went to the Boyce Thompson Arboretum, which is just up the mountain from us. It's a pretty cool place. It has plant life from all across the world: native AZ, South Africa, Australia, Asia, etc.

As we made our way around one of the loops through the park, I found it difficult not to notice the many, many different kinds of cacti growing along the trail. Especially since I was trying to herd the two 2-year-olds away from the cacti.

I grew up surrounded by big shade trees: oak, aspen, and even pecan. I love crunching through the leaves in the fall (as long as I'm not the one responsible to rake them). I love watching rolling fields of green anything -- hay, corn, wheat. Springtime along Ute Pass, near Pikes Peak, is incredibly green and one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen.

And so it surprised me how much I respected and enjoyed the mystery of the cacti today.

Photo by Jabon Eagar

These plants, though not the usual leafy green foliage I generally enjoy, are growing completely out of the rock. There's no nutrient-rich soil. There's no thirst-quenching rain.

But these flora are survivors. They grow and, somehow, thrive for years. Like, generations.

There are two ways to see this:

1) The cacti live and survive in such harsh and foreboding circumstances because they are fierce. They do what it takes to protect themselves, including growing spiny and prickly needles. They are hard. They have to be to survive. They are not everyone's ideal landscape because not everyone thinks they are beautiful.

Or

2) They may not be the prettiest things to see, but their existence is miraculous. Popping up in the middle of rocks and sand and flourishing is nothing short of admirable. They've fought to be there and they want to live. No amount of trials and tribulations will stop them. They rally their spirits with the chorus of Survivor by Destiny's Child.

I like Option 2. It's a lot more likable and identifiable.

Here are some other shots from our day:

Millie and her cousin Ashton. He came to help her catch up with the group.

There was a stage in the picnic area. Stage = heck of a good time!

Bumps on the log.... Emma, Matt, Brett, Abby, Cody

The girls were Rock Models. As Rock Models, they show off rocks. I told them they rock.

Millie Marie

2011-01-14T23:27:00.000-07:00

I found this old post and realized it never published. I think I couldn't get the video to upload. Maybe I don't know. But the pictures are cute, so I thought I'd share.

*****************************************

I need to clear some space off my memory card in preparation for Halloween and the Trunk or Treat at church tomorrow evening.

Here are some candids of our Millie Marie.

I know they are bad shots. You have no idea how hard it is to get this girl to hold still!

Millie wore a cute little piggie to church last Sunday. She actually pulled the bow off before we got out the door and into the van, but the piggie itself stayed until about 20 minutes after the meetings. Amazing.

And if you need a live action of this little girl, just watch this. She's pretty calm in this because she's sleepy. At the zoo last week I asked her if she wanted to sit back in her stroller since she had been walking a lot. She would hold her hand out to the stroller, nearly double in half as she yelled to me, "NOOOOOOOO!!!!"

And never mind that it's cut off at the end. My memory card ran out of space. Such is life, right?

Larynx vs Larnyx

2011-01-14T19:47:00.001-07:00

This morning I stopped by the kids' school to watch the school Spelling Bee. Emma was a contender. If Abby hadn't been sick, she would've been too, but she had to stay home.

Anyway, I got there and poor Emma, who struggles with spelling in the first place, was given the word

Preferable

She asked for the word in a sentence and proceeded to spell. Unfortunately, the bell dinged for her and she had to sit in the audience because she didn't get it right.

Ah, the memories!!

I was in the school Spelling Bee in 5th grade. I won our class spelling bee and when the top few of us reported for the school's bee, one boy in my class came up to me and told me that HE was going to kick my behind when HE won. Since he was a big jerk, I silently rooted against him. Hey, not only was I 11, but he was always mean to me (one of the kids that called me names because of my birthmark). I tried not to smirk when he misspelled one of his words. (I still smirk at the memory.)

I spelled a few words right but then I got the word "Larynx". The presenter said the word and I repeated it. She said to me, "No. Larynx." I repeated it again and again she told me that I pronounced it incorrectly. So then I tried to pronounce it larnyx. Again, I was told I said it wrong. What the heck? I was pretty sure I knew how to spell it, but all this argument was confusing me.

Needless to say, I spelled the stupid word wrong. Every so often I have the tendency to drawl words. Maybe I did it that day and that's why the lady was convinced that I was saying the word wrong. But seriously! How many ways are there to say it???

So, my hopes of winning the school Spelling Bee were crushed. And so were Emma's. I did find it funny, however, when she smirked when she told me that Landon (the "smartest" boy in her class) got third place instead of first.

Like mother, like daughter.

Running the Extra Mile

2011-01-12T15:48:00.000-07:00

I've had a rough few days. So to find some humor in my frustrations is a good sign, I think. Maybe I'm not as stressed out today, which is a good thing.

I began running again last week. It was good to do. I've run with Millie a few times and by myself a few times. I love how good I feel afterward. In fact, I've been feeling so good afterward that I went for more of a challenge today.

I've been running two miles over the last week and a half. But it hasn't been quite enough to really push me. Plus, I don't have music on my mp-3 that coordinates with a 23 minute run. It's all on there from the end of my Couch to 5k program and set up for 35 to 45 minute runs. Problem is, my favorite songs are the last songs on my playlists and I keep missing them because I finish my run before I reach that point in my playlist.

Today I thought I'd challenge myself with running 3 miles and playing my 5k playlist. I knew my favorite song would be the last song I'd hear while running and then some of my other favorite songs as I walked the remainder of the way home.

I was nearly done with my running and the song before my favorite came on. I was so excited because it's been so long since I've run to my favorite song. The last chord played and I prepared myself to straighten my shoulders as my favorite gave me that last bit of umph I needed to finish my 3 miles....... Silence.

I haven't charged my mp-3 player since before Thanksgiving. And it died.

I still haven't run to my favorite song. Despite my literal extra mile, I didn't get to hear my song.

My mp-3 player is currently charging.

A Lesson on the Heart

2011-01-10T22:43:00.002-07:00

Matt had his check up this afternoon. You'd think I'd be a prime candidate for medical school with all the echocardiograms I've seen, all the EKGs I've seen, all the models of hearts I've seen and handled.

But I'm not. Not even close.

Tonight a piece of reality struck.

Matthew will never have a "good" check up. There's an anatomy lesson coming on, so hold on to your seat.

Above you'll see a normal heart. The pulmonary valve sits in the uneven section just under the letters PA in the blue. The light blue and the red indicate where the volume of blood flows and the dark blue are all the walls of the heart muscle. As the heart pumps, blood flows from the body to the right atrium (RA) and through the the tricuspid valve to the right ventricle (RV) and up through the pulmonary valve to the pulmonary artery (PA) and out to the lungs. The blood is oxygenated and sent back in to the heart where the left ventricle (LV) pumps the blood to the entire body. So, the RV and the muscle surrounding it doesn't have to be too big and strong because it's final destination is the nearby lungs, where the LV needs to send blood to every extremity of the body.

Up until this point in time, I've been worried about the condition of Matt's valve. He has a bovine valve that was placed in his heart nearly four years ago. Wow, has it been four years already? This March. Anyway, I only worried about the valve itself. I knew with Matt's heart growing along with the rest of his body that this implanted valve would not function at 100% forever.

The truth of the matter is, Matt's heart, with or without a "new" valve, will never function at 100%. It will never be "normal". At first, Matt's valve was sealed shut and no blood could flow to the PA at all. He survived because, as a fetus, he had an extra passage called the PDA which allowed oxygenated blood to flow through the heart. Now, however, there's a different circumstance. The valve has leakage. It started out working okay, with some mild leakage. But over time his heart has grown and the leakage has increased and is now moderate to severe. Matt's valve cannot shut completely to keep blood flowing in one direction and even though blood pumps from the RV to the PA, it slips back into the RV from the PA in between pumps. And so, if you see this picture at the left, the muscle around the RV (the dark blue) is very thick. The heart is actually very strong and it has to compensate for the lack of "normal" flow.

Matt's heart doesn't show much of a change between today and six months ago. But his RV is considered "large." Not that the volume within it is large, but the muscle around it is large. The muscle is pumping so much to try to get the blood to the lungs that it can cause a blockage in the path to the PA. Or, the RA (which is also enlarged) could end up growing too big and causing blood to pool and creating clots.

And so I've suddenly realized there's way more to it than just if the valve works. I've learned what it is the doctors are doing. As Josh put it, it's a numbers game. Because of the extreme risk to put a person on a bypass machine as the surgeon cuts open his ribs and physically touches his heart, they risk the anatomy of the heart. Yes, there's a risk with having a leaking valve. Yes, there is a risk with having over-sized muscle walls in the heart. Yes, there is the possibility of clots or loss of oxygen. But can your body stand to continue these risks a little bit longer to avoid open heart surgery?

Now there is the possibility when he stops growing that his valve will work with mild leakage for a while longer. Possibly. But then it becomes the game again of not replacing the thing that eventually causes so much damage (the failing valve) that it's life threatening because the alternative is life threatening-er.

No, my son does not have an obvious defect. His condition would even surprise most people that meet him but don't know his story. But I can't ignore it. I can't forget it. I can't let it go without thinking about it every day.

In six months we'll go have an MRI to try to get a better idea of how that RV is doing. Then we'll go a week later to sit down with the doc to discuss the results of the MRI and do another echo. Then we will see if he has a better idea of when we want to replace the valve again.

And so we continue to wait.

The Heart of the Matt-er

2011-01-09T21:03:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow Matt goes to the pediatric cardiologist for his semi-annual check up.

Here's hoping I can sleep tonight.

We're not expecting anything out of the ordinary at Matt's appointment. Simply put, Matt has pulmonary atresia that has required his pulmonary valve to be replaced and additional replacements will occur every 5 to 15 years throughout his life. At the last check up we found that Matt's valve leaks a bit, but unless it begins to block the flow of blood, we probably still have a couple years left with his current valve.

I think what I dread the most is the reality of the matter. Every time we visit the cardiologist we are another six months closer to Matt's next surgery. This isn't the most optimistic way to look at these appointments.

I SHOULD think, "Oh, another check up, another six months we probably don't have to worry."

I SHOULD think, "We just spent another six months without having to take him in for surgery, phew."

I SHOULD think, "Yay, Matt gets a new sticker."

But I don't. I've learned to hope for the best, but prepare myself for the worst. I'm generally a positive person, but we've hit snags before. Mostly, it was the day we discovered Matt needed the surgery that led to all of this repeat-surgery stuff. We had expected a clean bill of health and annual check ups for a couple of years leading to check ups every two years or so. But instead we were hit with the news that our son needed a different surgery that would require replacements throughout his life.

Because of this experience, I'm careful. I don't expect miracles, but I also pray that we'll have more time. It was an eye-opener last June when we heard the doctor tell us that we had about two years left with this valve. My mom had to remind me that he'd already had it for three, so he was on the expected course. Still, it's not easy.

So tomorrow we plan to take our son in for an appointment, see where he is compared to six months ago, and possibly get a new idea of how long before our next date with the surgeon. Here's hoping for a productive check up.

Buy It, Rent It, Ignore It

2011-01-08T23:51:00.001-07:00

Here is a little segment I like to call: Buy It, Rent It, Ignore It.

We've watched some new-ish movies lately and I thought I'd share my opinions...

Ignore It

Dinner With Schmucks and The Other Guys. They're both crude and offensive movies. Not really sure why I sat through them. Don't bother.

Rent It

Although Paul Rudd really disappointed me in Dinner, I did enjoy his performance in How Do You Know? with Reese Witherspoon and Owen Wilson. It's a cute one where Reese is torn between the man she's dating and the man she's falling in love with. It's a nice little movie and Jack Nicholson has a great cameo role. When it comes to video, rent it.

Buy It

Tangled is probably one of Disney's best creations in the last several years. Buy it. Buy it the first week it's on video and costs way too much. I've noticed a very obvious evolution in Disney movies, specifically with the princesses/heroines. Disney princesses of the 21st century don't just sit around and sing to animals while they wait for the prince to come rescue them. Disney princesses of today go searching for their happiness, whatever it may be. In the case of Tangled, she wants to get out. I don't want to say much more, but it's great. I even like the "Disney" version better than the original story. Everyone knows that Disney takes liberties with original stories and "pretties" them up. In this case, Disney has added more intrigue and magic to the story of Rapunzel. Do you know the original story of Rapunzel? While pregnant with her, Rapunzel's mother sees some rapunzel greens in the yard of the witch next door. She wants some so bad she starves until her husband sneaks into the witch's garden to gets some. The wife eats it up and cries and begs for more so her husband has to chance the witch on the ultimate craving-run and gets caught. So he offers his unborn child to the witch in exchange for more rapunzel greens. Then the witch takes the baby and eventually locks her in a tower. Yeah, the Disney version is better. Believe me. Buy it as soon as it's available and you will see. Or go to the theater. It's still playing.

True Grit. Holy cow. I wasn't sure what to think of this before seeing it, but I wanted to go in with an open mind. First off, I grew up watching John Wayne movies. I have no idea how many times I've seen the original version of True Grit. Is "several" a number? And I feel a fierce loyalty to the Duke. But, I was also very interested in the new version. Raise your hand if you love Matt Damon.... I'd raise my hand, but I'm typing. He's great, but then again, a wet paper bag could act better than Glen Campbell. And the young girl, Hailee Steinfeld, is endearing. Much more endearing than Kim Darby had been. Plus, the Coen brothers make great movies (O Brother, Where Art Thou and Raising Arizona). I just wasn't sure how I would feel watching Jeff Bridges play Rooster Cogburn. Here's my feeling: both movies (the 1969 version and the 2010 version) were based on the same book. The plot is nearly the same, the characters are nearly the same but the movies were made during two completely different eras in Hollywood with two different generations of filmmakers. It's like trying to compare Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. They're essentially the same story, but so different it's really hard to compare them. I think Josh and I both agreed that the only thing Jeff Bridges didn't do as well as John Wayne was the line, "Fill your hands, you SOB!" But it's such an iconic line, it's impossible for anyone else to do it. My recommendation is to buy it. Not necessarily when it costs $25, but eventually buy it. See it in the theater or rent it, but plan on buying it.

And that's tonight's rendition of Buy It, Rent It, Ignore It.

Growing Like a Weed

2011-01-04T22:20:00.000-07:00

Millie had a check up last week. I was kind of looking forward to it because we are continually being asked how old she is. When we report her age, the first response we generally get is, "Wow. She's tall." I hadn't really thought about it since I see her every day.

So, how tall is she?

I'm happy to report that Millie is 37" tall. That's well over the percentile lines on the little chart thing-y at the doctor's office. I checked out the chart and saw that 37" is the average height of a 3-year-old. Oh. No wonder everyone thinks she's tall.

The doc did give me some food for thought. She said to make sure we are her advocates. With her being tall, people (teachers, other parents, other kids) may expect more from her that she's not capable of. She needs to have the chance to act like a two-year-old. The "mine"s and "gimme"s are natural and to be expected. Luckily, she's still practically bald and constantly has a pacifier in her mouth, so she's just seen as tall and not older.

However, her height and weight played in our favor tonight when she got into a bottle of melatonin. We've been giving the big girls some small doses of it to help them fall asleep at night. It's been working very well. But Millie is tall enough to reach lots of things on the countertops. (That's not the part that played in our favor. In fact, that's opposite of our favor, but anyway....)

As the kids were heading up to bed, we discovered the melatonin pills all over the floor. Not cool. But if she took any of the pills, they didn't effect her too much. I went to check on her 20 minutes after I laid her down as the nice lady at the poison control center suggested, and the sound of the door woke her up. Then she wanted me to hold her. What could I do? I was a bit nervous about the uncertainty of her dabble in supplemental health and let her stay up with me. And she did. I think we're in the clear.

So, here's my track record with poison control:

Emma -- no calls.
Abby -- one call because she ate half a jar of Bag Balm.
Matt -- no calls.
Millie -- one call for a possible melatonin spree.

Anyone else see a pattern here?

I'm just hoping for a quiet night. And for a supplemental-melatonin-free toddler.

Locks of Love

2011-01-03T21:50:00.000-07:00

Emma decided a week or two that she wanted to donate her hair. But she didn't want to do it right then. She wanted to wait until January. It came up again just a few days ago and it became obvious that she was a little hesitant about it when she realized in slight horror that January was nearly upon her.

Today, however,was the day to do the deed. The kids had today off from school, but they head back tomorrow. Emma wanted to have her new style in time for school tomorrow morning. I had to ask her several more times if she was sure she wanted to go through with it. She said she was scared, but she was ready for her cut.

In the midst of all of this, Abby realized that there was a lot of attention given to this situation. She decided that she wanted to donate her hair too.

So, let's pause this story for some reality of the situation.

We had a very generous Christmas and I'm on a strict budget until Friday. Emma's hair donation was going to allot her a free hair cut. Cool. I can afford free. Abby's sudden interest threw a little wrench in my plans. If her hair wasn't long enough to donate, she simply could not get a cut right now.

Sometimes telling a child No is not a big deal.

But if you, like me, have a

Dr Jekyll

Mr Hyde

child, you know that this is not always something you want to deal with. Some battles are not worth fighting. But to make things worse, Abby got a short cut a couple years ago and complained for about a year after it that she hated her short hair, mostly because Emma just got a trim, not a cut, and had longer hair.

Are you feeling me? Do you see where my issues lie here?

So Abby was called up first and her hair measured just about an inch too short (Locks of Love requires a 10" minimum) to leave her with a chin length bob like she wanted. So she had to go back to the waiting area. Torture. For both of us.

Anyway.

Emma hopped into the chair and off went her long pony tail. She was all smiles and the nervousness from earlier was mostly gone. Although, there was a moment of shock looking at her long ponytail in the stylist's hand.

She loves her new 'do and is so excited to show it off.

Hopefully her hair will be so much easier to keep neat and nice looking. And I think she loved the thought of helping out someone in need. There's a young woman at church who is battling leukemia and her experience is an incredible springboard to start conversations about how/why people get sick and the many things we can do to help others around us who are struggling or in pain. Emma's donation won't directly help this young woman, but it will help someone, somewhere.

Back to the story of Abby. I did feel bad for Abby that she didn't get to have her own moment in the sun, despite the meltdown in Great Clips. I told her that I would trim her hair when we got home. She seemed to accept that and would've gotten the scissors herself if she knew where I kept them. On the way home I explained to her that if she waited until Valentine's Day, she could donate to Locks of Love too. If I trimmed her hair, it could take another three months or so. She decided she just wanted me to give her a cut.

Okay, another reality check.

Summer of 2007 I cut the girls' hair. I cut them both a lot shorter than I intended and they got teased by the poopy neighbor boys next door that were stupid jerks. (I didn't much care for them.) I felt so bad and I hated that I had messed up their hair. I haven't cut their hair since.

But remember

Dr Jekyll

Mr Hyde

If I messed up again by cutting Abby's hair too short, she would hate it and remind me of how much she hates it everyday. I was scared to even try this. But, I had budgeted for free hair cuts.

So, what did I do? I bit the bullet and PRAYED everything would work out.

Luckily, Abby loves her hair cut. It's not too short, but an obvious difference from her previous style.

PHEW!!!

Emma and Abby both look great and I hope they have a great day tomorrow as they head back to school and show off their new coifs to their friends and teachers.

2010 in Review/Revue/Re-view

2011-01-01T23:37:00.001-07:00

Just a little video highlighting our year.

Happy Holidays from the Johnsons!

New Year 2011

2011-01-01T20:37:00.000-07:00

It's 2011. Time to begin the inner-turmoil of writing the wrong date for about four months.

I wrote down my goals last year. Way to go, Me. Now I have no excuse. I know what I did and did not do this last year. Here's what I have to say about that: Crap!

2010 Goals:
1. Stop using my pseudo-swear words. No more "crap" or "fricken" or "crap." This is going to be hard.
2. Finish my novel. Josh thinks this is going to be a lofty goal. Granted, so far I only have the Prologue, but I just rewrote it the other day and I like it so it should spur me on to finish the rest of the book, I hope.
3. Lose those last 25 lbs. I'll do this by exercising at least five days a week and eating better. That means I've got to finish the last few Diet Cherry Pepsi's in the fridge so I can stop drinking soda pop. And we've got to finish up the ice cream cake in the freezer so we can stop eating ice cream.

Yeah.

So, I do have to admit that my pseudo-swearing, though it did not stop, has slowed a lot. And I didn't finish my novel, but I rewrote it a few times and I've finished a few chapters. And I'm pretty sure I weigh as much this January as I did last January. Ugh. Flop on all three points!!!

But, even though I didn't accomplish all (any) of my goals, I really want to make my new resolutions for 2011.

1. No moving in 2011!!!

2. I want to complete at least one 5k and maybe even a 10k this year, if I'm not pregnant during racing season.

3. Eat healthily and get my work outs back in order. And get a physical.

4. Spend more time writing my novel. I'd LOVE to finish that sucker because I'd like to start another one, but I can't until I'm done with the first!

5. Feel good about myself so I can give more of myself to my husband and kids. When I hate the way I look (like now) or I feel lazy (like now) or wish I could get back on track (like now), I spend too much time upset with myself and I don't give enough to my family. They shouldn't suffer because I'm upset at myself. So, I want to get myself organized. I've got a few ideas of what to try. However, I'm secretly anally retentive and I'm embarrassed to divulge too much info, so if it works, maybe I'll share. If it doesn't, then you'll just know that I'm secretly obsessive about organization. Which is good when I'm organized, but bad when I'm not.

ANYWAY.

Here's to a New Year and new goals that I PRAY I'll accomplish!!