Banter, Buffoonery & Bloggy Blather

Life Problems

2012-01-23T14:47:00.000-08:00

I was at the beauty supply store Saturday evening, like most stores they play music for everyone to hear. I was browsing the hair color when "Another One Bites the Dust" came on. I was most likely singing along.

Just around the corner from me a couple of the gals who work there were trying to figure out who sings the song.

"Is it Michael Jackson?"

"No, I don't think its Michael Jackson."

The words promptly burst from my mouth: "ITS QUEEN."

"Oh yeah, its Queen."

"Yeah I didn't think it sounded anything like Michael Jackson...blah blah blah...I'm an idiot." (I may have added that last bit. Maybe.)

I mean, I knew our country was bad off but I didn't know it was THAT bad! I just don't know if I can live in a world where people don't appreciate Queen...

Validation is a Two-Edged Sword

2012-01-18T09:49:00.001-08:00

I like validation. Validation is important, not just to me but for most people. I took a relationship class once at BYU Education Week and they said the key to good communication was: validate, validate, validate! I don't know why, but I *need* people to understand where I'm coming from and what I feel. I just do.

BUT sometimes validation is not a good thing. For example, when we lived in Utah we lived in my husband's grandpa's very old house. It was a tiny house, built in 1904, it had two bedrooms and one teeny tiny bathroom. With brown carpet. And what I mean by that is nasty brown carpet IN the bathroom. Don't worry, eventually we got rid of the carpet, but I remember having a conversation with two of my cousins: one was saying that she thought I'd done such a cute job on our little house (it was pretty gross when we moved in, the person living there before us was a bachelor and smoked), and I was saying something like how much I hated that little bathroom. The one cousin said "Oh no, its just fine! You've made it so cute!" and the other cousin started laughing and said "Yeah, not my favorite bathroom! hahaha!" And I remember thinking, yeah I know I just said I hated it but I didn't want you to agree with me. *big tear drop, sad face* (side note: I LOVE that cousin, and I get she wasn't trying to be mean, I get where she's coming from too, it still hurt though.)

So in some instances validating people is not a good thing. I hate it when you admit to something, you've already acknowledged it and someones like "You really DO do that!" Thanks, yup, already aware.

So, here's a list I thought of that you should NEVER validate someone on:

*"I always look so fat in this shirt."

*"I know I sound selfish, but..."

*"I'm really bad at..."

*"I'm a bad parent."

*"I struggle with..."

*"I'm not very nice."

*"I'm ugly."

*"I hate my hair."

*"I know this is silly to be upset over but..."

*"I have issues with..."

*"My teeth are yellow."

*"My nose looks like a rats."

*"I have muffin top."

*"I need to lose weight."

*"My husband's a jerk."

*"My kids are naughty."

*"I know I sound crazy, but bobby pins are important to me..."

Please, don't agree with someone on these kind of statements. You are not doing anyone a favor, you are not "helping" them be a better person. Usually someone says those kinds of things for you to tell them that its not true and they really are a great person. So, unless you are that person's sister and they are really truly asking you for advice, then just don't do it.

Don't. Do. It.

Adventures in... What Was That Word Again?

2012-01-07T10:26:00.000-08:00

When you can't sleep at night, a lot of things go through your mind:

1. Go to sleep, go to sleep. GO TO SLEEP. PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY LET ME SLEEP!!

2. Then you might get your ipod and look at every single Facebook status update and read each comment and look at every picture you can possibly find.

3. Sure that was boring, but not enough to put you to sleep.

4. You *think* about going downstairs and getting on the computer but no matter how bored you are, there isn't any way you would go sit in the freezing, scary downstairs where a murderer is probably waiting for you.

5. Whats that word for when you can't sleep?? Narcotic...omnipotent...aahh...ihhh something?

6. Did we have something garlicky for dinner? Why does my stomach feel so upset?!

7. Pass gas.

8. Oh yeah, we had CHILI for dinner. Duh.

9. Realize you are an idiot for staying up past midnight every night for the last two weeks. You'd think that it would make it easy to fall asleep earlier than normal since you've been exhausted. But no. Your body's all "Ha ha! Its not midnight yet, you can't sleep!!"

10. You check the clock every couple minutes. Nope, not asleep yet.

11. "I'm sexy and I know it..." replays over and over in your head.

12. Impotent...Armania...incontinence...

13. Start to finally doze.

14. Your husband rolls over and throws his big fat, heavy, hairy, fat arm on your back and startles you back awake.

15. Curse the day you ever got married.

16. Armoire? Insipid? Start to doze again.

16. Your baby wakes up crying.

17. Curse the day you ever had children.

18. Get baby and bring them back to your bed, hoping to get some sleep.

19. Baby coughs in your face every few minutes.

20. Punch yourself in the face so you can finally sleep.

21. Oh yeah: Insomnia!

Because I Just Can't Let This Go

2012-01-03T10:19:00.000-08:00

Okay People.

I will be honest with you. I can admit that I have a somewhat obsessive personality. Sometimes its just whatever, and sometimes its really hard to deal with. Something gets under my skin and it just itches and itches and ITCHES until--I don't know--I've scratched it until it bleeds? (Thats metaphorical. I don't actually scratch an itch until it bleeds. Usually.)

So I've talked before of the addictive qualities of Pinterest. One of the things I've seen repinned quite a few times is this one lady's hairstyles. So I clicked on the link and started browsing through her hair blog. When I came upon this post.

Let me just preface this by saying, NO I am not a professional hair stylist. So YES, maybe I should just keep my mouth shut-- BUT I can't. In my defense I've been using bobby pins for a LONG time. I've done countless prom hairstyles, I've done people's hair for fun events, weddings--for both bridesmaids and BRIDES. I DO know something about hair and bobby pins whether I went to school for it or not (besides I'm POSITIVE there is not a section on the correct side of bobby pins...).

ANYWAY, if you didn't read the post, she says the the CORRECT way to wear bobby pins is the wavy side down. Where she came up with that is beyond me. Look at the package, the wavy side is UP. Why would they put it that way if it wasn't supposed to go that way in the first place? There is a little thing on the end of the wavy side that sticks up, why would you stick that into your head? It works to stick your thumbnail under that thing and open the pin up, you couldn't do it the other way. If you look at any product that has something stuck to a bobby pin, its on the WAVY side. Indicating that that is the RIGHT SIDE UP.

GRRRRR.

Okay. So now, IF she had said "Hey peeps, do you have a hard time keeping a bobby pin from sliding out your hair?! Guess what?! Put it in upside down and it works so much better at staying put! Awesome huh?!" I would have been like: cool beans.

Its just the fact that she said its SUPPOSED to go that way, it was MADE to go wavy down. Then I start reading the comments, SURE that someone was going to say, UM NO. And of course not, there are hundreds of people with their "minds blown they've been doing it wrong their WHOLE life!!!" and I don't know why it bothers me but it SO DOES.

So I left a comment. Just basically saying what I told you in a much shorter version, like: just needed to say, bobby pins really *are* meant to be zigzag side up, if you'd meant it as a tip to help people I would think thats great but it bothers me to say its wrong to put them in the other way...kind of thing.

And she left a comment back, saying in her professional experience everyone who does hair does it zigzag down and it works so much better, but keep doing it the way I feel like...

Uhhh...okay?

And so I went and looked at pictures of people with their hair done up where you can see the bobby pin, and you know what?! I COULDN'T FIND ONE where it wasn't zigzag side up. Huh. Interesting. (This is from Goody's website and this one too...AND also there's this...and I may have possibly looked up more...)

And so I replied again. Saying that it wasn't about what works better, it was about the wording of which way was actually correct. I also told her I thought she did great hair and I thought it was great she shared tutorials on how to do hair--because I'm not a total jerk.

So please, PLEASE validate me. Not whether or not it works better either way but do you think Goody made bobby pins to go zigzag side up in your hair or zigzag side down? (I don't trust big blog mindless readers who will comment on every stinking post with "I LOVE IT! THATS THE MOST BRILLIANT THING I'VE EVER SEEN!"even if its the stupidest thing I've ever read in my life, just because that blog is popular and they want them to like them. I DO trust you guys, who are awesome and honest. So do the right thing and tell me I am actually correct and she's a big fat doodie head.) ;)

Also, yes I know this is incredibly pathetic and ridiculous. I KNOW. But like I said, I can't stop scratching until it bleeds, so this is what I have to do to feel better, alright? help me.

2011- Who Know's When?

2011-12-31T11:46:00.000-08:00

Time again for my look back at 2011 and give you my favorites! Yay!

Favorite Song:

Its a toss up between Crossfire and Only the Young by Brandon Flowers. I am OBSESSED with these two songs right now! LOVE IT!

honorable mention:

Stereo Hearts by Gym Class Heroes

Moves Like Jagger by Maroon 5 (oddly those two songs both have Adam Levine singing, huh.)

Favorite Movie:

Kung Fu Panda 2 (I really loved this movie!)

honorable mention:

Thor

Sherlock Holmes 2 (I haven't seen this but I KNOW I would love it! Mmmmhmmm)

Harry Potter--so epic!

Tangled

Favorite TV Show:

The Vampire Dairies

I am obsessed with this show and can't wait for it to start again in January! Whoo!

honorable mention:

Any of the Real Housewives of course ;)

The Rachel Zoe Project

Project Runway

Favorite Book:

I Capture The Castle

I read over 60 books this year, its hard to choose a favorite!

There were a couple series I loved, Gregor the Overlander and Inheritance (which is the Eragon series), I really enjoyed those!

honorable mention:

My blog friend Melanie wrote The List and I honest to goodness LOVED it, it was hysterical, seriously had me laughing out loud and grinning stupidly. It was a fast, light read and I so enjoyed every minute. The ending was fabulous!

Favorite Vacation:

We honestly didn't take ANY trips this year. Not even a camping trip. What a lame year. My husband did take many trips to Washington DC for work and he spent a month in Korea, so lucky for him. :/

Favorite Outfit:

I'm changing this from clothes I own to ones I want ;) I discovered Pinterest this year, so there is a lot to be inspired and want from off there! haha

Yes, I realize these don't really have anything to do with 2011, except that I spent a lot of time coveting these outfits. If I had the money, I would have dressed like this in 2011. ;)

Favorite Project:

(this isn't mine, same idea but picture it in a mustardy yellow)

It would be my favorite project if I could get it to work, but I redid a coffee table into a tufted bench. Except that I've redone the top twice and need to again since Kimball's pulled half the buttons off. This time when I re-do it, it will be PERFECT! :)

Most drastic change:

I cut my hair short again, and dyed it bright red!

Highlights:

Bethany was baptized!

Kimball turned one

new family pictures

fun summer and fall

Peter Pan themed Halloween:

Maddie started kindergarden (Bethany 3rd grade)

Fun 30th birthday for my sister

Kimball started nursery!

Lowlights:

my computer crashed and I lost a LOT of pictures :(

Dave was gone for a month in Korea, that was hard :(

Definitely this was a good year, much improved from the year before, I like the thought of every year getting a little better. We grow a little more, we become a little more patient, a little more loving, a little...more. Here's hoping we can take 2012 and make it what we want it to be!

Christmas...I Don't Want to Talk About It...

2011-12-25T23:00:00.000-08:00

There are many, MANY things on my mind about Christmas right now. But since today really IS Christmas, I'm thinking it would be bad karma to actually complain about it...right? I mean, just a few small...you know...observations about the holiday, that I absolutely LOATHE right now?!?! (*huffy breathing* and *crazy eyes darting back and forth*)

Okay, you're right. Its wrong. I won't complain about Christmas on Christmas. The only thing I'm going to say is "I don't care if I ever give presents to anyone ever again."

See, there, that wasn't so bad was it?! Naw, not at all.

So to end this post on a slightly more positive note, here's our Christmas letter! Whooey!

Well, I've tried four times to upload our family picture but blogger is a total mo fo and I hate it.(*this was said very calmly by the way*)
Since blogger won't let me upload our actual Christmas picture, this was going to be the back up:

Honestly, we had a very nice Christmas; just the stress of it about sent me into a psychiatric coma and let's face it, I will not learn anything from this and do it next year as well. And however many more Christmas's until someone begs me not to participate anymore. Sooooo...

Meeeerrry Chriiiistmaas!

Sometimes This is How I Feel

2011-12-12T14:01:00.000-08:00

*shuffles in, peaks around the corner, bows head*

Hey guys...

Just a few random things to let you know that yes, I am in fact still alive. I'm freaking out about getting the homemade Christmas gifts I planned, actually out of the planning stage and done. And by freaking out, I mean watching every episode of The Vampire Diaries I can squeeze into my day. And sometimes The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. The two shows are surprisingly alike, just based on drama. And sucking the life out of people.

I did get my Christmas decorations up, hallelujah for that.

I was on my period this last week and decided I would be completely happy to have my uterus removed altogether. I don't need it right?! Also, I'm pretty sure whoever designs feminine hygiene products is a man. A big, fat, stupid, hairy man that has never bled a day in his life and has no idea what "absorption" means. Because that crap does NOT work.

You know, kids really are disgusting. You ever walk into a room and see something sitting there and you can't even explain WHAT THE CRAP that is? I have to periodically go in and clean my kids rooms (yes, after they've done it themselves REALLY GOOD--according to them), and it so disgusts me with what I find. Why the crap is everything shoved under the bed? A used tissue wadded up under something? Something I can't even begin to describe? Check. I feel like I should call my mom and apologize for ever being a disgusting child.

I realized the other day that the only time I feel like blogging is when I have something to complain about. Thats bad. So when I was a teenager and my mom would hear me gossiping to my girlfriends for hours at a time and tell me that that was wrong and when I was an adult it wouldn't just go away--she was right. Not that I sit around and gossip, just meaning that I'm a complainer and I like to talk about complainy, whiny things. That those things are the things that I like to think about and talk about and analyze kind of things. Things. There were a lot of things in that last sentence. But the point is that I complain a lot and I guess I don't like that.

I was thinking how awesome it would be when all my kids are in school and how much more stuff I would get done during the day, and then I realized that I would probably be just as lazy as I am now. That wasn't a complaint I swear.

So much stuff to avoid doing...but I should probably get something done before my youngest wakes up from his nap and before I have to pick the other two up from school, at which point everything goes to pot. So yeah...thanks for the little chat...

*neck hurts from talking into my chest that whole time, shuffles away*

Laying Out My Weaknesses

2011-11-03T12:06:00.000-07:00

Okay FINE! I am finally posting.

I don't know why I haven't felt like blogging lately, I haven't even felt like reading blogs really and that has never happened before! There are things I've been thinking about and the thought keeps popping up: "You should blog this before you forget about it!"

But then I forget about it.

Okay fine, I DO know why I haven't felt like blogging...

A couple weeks ago my husband and I were asked to speak at a youth Standard Night. The Bishop asked us to talk about (get this:) media, the computer, phones, texting, Facebook--that kind of thing. The irony in this is hysterical. Since I am completely addicted to my computer.

So I started preparing and I started reading and I started feeling really, really...guilty. I was reading quotes about "idleness" and being accountable to God for how we use our time, and how Satan tries to minimize the importance of our bodies by sucking us into a life of "unreality" instead of living a REAL important life and enjoying the time and people we have right in front of us. Ugh.

So, although the point of it wasn't to say that the computer (or phones, or texting or whatever) is BAD, it is highly addictive and we have to be careful about not "becoming a slave" to it.

So I've tried to make some changes--do you know how hard it is to be addicted to something thats right in the middle of your living room, that calls to you, that says "just sit down for ONE minute, take a little break, its okay..."?! Its hard I tell you. I've also found that I don't know what to do with myself a lot of the time. Okay I won't sit on the computer, my house is clean, now what do I do? Is that not completely pathetic?! (Please don't answer that, I'm going through a very rough time...)

So I've tried to get organized, come up with ideas, make lists of things to do and whatnot; and its starting to sort of work, I think. Yeah. You know, I think Satan is pretty smart because although I haven't had a real sort of physical addiction to anything (except maybe Mountain Dew), I think a mental addiction could be just as hard to break. Its like my brain is fuzzy, its like every time I stay away from the computer I have a million questions that need to be answered by google RIGHT NOW...

So anyway, thats about it I think. I'm working on using my time better and not being completely consumed by the convenience of the internet. I did have a great post to write about my thoughts on Pinterest, but somehow this came out instead. Sorry. Next time we'll get to the addictive qualities of Pinterest. See its related!

Masquerade!! People's Faces on Parade!

2011-10-17T11:10:00.000-07:00

It was my sister's 30th birthday at the beginning of the month, since she has a long history of kind of sucky birthdays her husband REALLY wanted to throw her a big party. It was a little bit of a rough go, trying to find a place to have it, trying to figure things out and get stuff done, my sister made her costume--it was AMAZING--but that takes time, so it was a little stressful for her I think.

You guys have to know, that my sister is one of my very best friends, I was really hoping this party would be awesome for her! It was a masquerade ball, so everyone should have some kind of mask and be dressed up. I LOVE dressing up and I LOVE Halloween parties, I wish I'd taken some pictures of the food (shame on me!), because there were intestines and worms and eyeballs and all kinds of awesome stuff! She had the party in a dance studio, so we even got some fun dance instructions too! We set up a little backdrop and had fun props and took pictures and really just laughed and danced and had a great time! I hope she knows how much I love her and that I at least had a fantastic time! :D Here's a couple pictures from the party:

This is my costume, I did a kind of "steampunk" costume. Its a little bit victorian with a punk twist, lots of clocks and cogs and stuff. Google it, I love it! :) And YES, I did make my costume!

This is my brother in law, he was a pirate (with a leprechaun belt...) and apparently the top hat just finished things up. :)

This is my beautiful sister! Doesn't she look awesome?! She really seriously made that dress! And you'll have to check her hair out in the other pictures, it was so great (I know I don't sound humble, but I did her hair too and was freaking out it looked so cool! haha)!!

I know she's cut off in these pictures, you'll have to click on them to see them full size!

This is my studly husband, I LOVED his costume. He kinda looks like a soda jerk, and I wish his mustache would have stayed on, but seriously so cute!

This is the backdrop, pretty fun right?

I made this cake special for my sister, its a lemon cake with raspberry filling, it was like five layers thick! haha

Sometimes This Happens With Short Hair

2011-10-11T18:33:00.001-07:00

Just realized how much I look lesbian-ish today...

...don't ask how my posing reflects that, that part is just because I'm weird.

I Like Wasting Time Apparently

2011-10-08T19:20:00.000-07:00

So its happened. I must have been super bored or my blood sugar was low or something but I decided to join...

...pinterest.

If you're on pinterest, you totally know what happened. If you're not you'll think this is totally dumb.

So for those of you WEIRDO's who've never even heard of pinterest, let me try to explain it simply. Have you ever been browsing blogs and come across a great tutorial or idea that you loved and wanted to bookmark for future reference? I don't usually bookmark sites, so I would normally email myself the link and hope I'd remember about it when I actually needed to use it. Well, with pinterest when you find that great idea, you "pin" it to a "board" about whatever interest you have and its all in one place for you. So lets say I have a board about cake decorating (which I dooo), if I come across a cake I like the style of or whatnot, I can pin it and find it super easy for future reference.

Now past the simple part, you also get to see what all your friends are pinning, so thats super fun and good for more ideas. PLUS you get to see what EVERYONE IN THE WORLD is pinning so even MORE fun. PLUS (yes theres more!) if you want specific ideas for specific things--like last night I was looking up "halloween food" for a party--you can type a search in for that and get thousands of ideas. Its awesome.

Also, its addicting.

All of a sudden not only do you want to pin ideas-- you want to SEARCH for more and more things to pin because its fun and its cute and people like what you pin and you feel super validated when someone sees your pin and RE-pins it because they like it too. Its like the cool kids group for craftiness or something.

I don't know if this is a post telling you to join pinterest or warning you of its evils...I'll leave that up to you! :)

Swass and All That Too

2011-10-05T10:48:00.001-07:00

So this week on Blossoming Bloggers, there's a recipe for fish tacos and the prompt is:

"Tell about one of your favorite dates you have ever been on."

Hmmmm. Favorite date huh...honestly, I got married right out of high school. Like five months after high school, and I was engaged those five months, so those kind of dates aren't real...datey; mostly just making out...heh heh...yeah...

Before I met my husband, all my other dates were in high school and you know thats not the same as dating as an adult. Not that the dates I went on then were BAD, they just were lame high school dates. :)

When my husband and I were dating, they were good dates, but pretty normal: dinner, movie, putt-putt golfing, baseball game...and then we were engaged...haha

This is the only story I can think of to tell you:

For my husband's thirtieth birthday we decided to invite some friends and go play lazer tag. We were super excited about it because...well, because lazer tag is freaking awesome, thats why. So we get there and get all geared up and ready to play, I'm pretty sure we played guys against girls. We're in the arena, its dark, the black lights are going and we are running around all crazy ninja style trying to be awesome and get the most points and MUTILATE the boys. We played several games until we were so hot and sweaty and exhausted we were done.

We go back and hang up our vests and guns and I turn around and look at my dear sweet husband. He has sweat lines all down his back, across his chest and under his moobs (man boobs). I looked at him and all I could say was, "You're really lucky this isn't a first date, because I'm not sure I would have gone out with you again..." and busted up laughing.

So there, not only do you get a fun story, there's some sound advice for dating:

Don't do a physically sweaty date for a few weeks, until you're sure they REALLY like you. And it helps if you have a few kids together already... :)

Lunch Bunch

2011-09-28T12:40:00.000-07:00

Okay, for this week's Lunch Bunch, the question is:

If you could address a graduating high school class, what would you say?

Boy, do I want to go short and sweet or long and boring? Hmmmmm, I'll probably think I'm doing short and sweet, and end up with long and boring...

Its different being general to everyone or even just specifically for boys or girls. If I was just talking to girls, I would say BE NICE TO EACH OTHER, working together women can do amazing things--but put against one another we can be seriously awful.

One thing I have tried to have as a motto is: You will always feel bad about doing something wrong, but you will NEVER be sorry you did what was right.

I think I love this Mother Theresa quote though:

People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.
If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway.
If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway.
The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway.
For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.

And I think that about sums it up. :)

What would YOU tell them?

Schedule Schmedule

2011-09-23T09:57:00.000-07:00

My kids are just going back to school today. Our district had a strike and they were out of school all last week and all this week until today. Now they're back and I can start that whole worrying about my kindergartner all over again. Its lovely.

But at least we can hopefully start our "school schedule" now, you know the one that says I should have showered by now...

I suck at keeping schedules.

I surely like to make lists and plans but thats about as far as I get most of the time. And I love it if I accidentally do something so I can cross it off. Thats awesome.

This is about what my day was like with all the kids home (in picture form):

It was craziness I tell ya.

This is how it is now with only the boys home:

A whole lotta this. Why are boys so gross?

I Like Everything But I Like The Computer Best

2011-09-14T13:10:00.000-07:00

Hi guys. Yup, I'm posting two whole days in a row! Can you believe it?!

Anyway, I was contacted by the bloggers who started Blossoming Bloggers and was asked if I wanted to do a Lunch Bunch post. All it is, is sharing a recipe and a prompt question. You can click over there to see the recipe, the question I asked was:

"Do you make time for hobbies and interests outside of being a mom and how do you do it?"

I'm supposed to write an answer to it as well, but I'm more interested in knowing how you guys make time for your interests--thats why I asked the question! heh

Since I have about a million and one interests (I'm easily amused....look a butterfly!!), I try and stick to things that are beneficial to my family (like decorating my house for cheaper than buying stuff) or things that I truly love so that the time I do use away from my family is worth it.

I've always liked photography, but never had an opportunity in high school or such to pursue it much, after I started having kids, I was of course taking pictures of them as much as possible. I've always loved art and drawing and painting, but to pull out supplies is messy and the time it takes to paint can be ridiculous when you have small children. Photography is instantaneous for the most part. *Click*--you have art. Its sometimes hard to go back to drawing, even though I miss it. Besides the fact that photoshop also fulfills that artistic need I have. One thing I've done this year to encourage my photography hobby was to join a 52 week project, each week we get a new prompt and have to take a picture for the theme within the time frame. Its fun because its not just pictures of my kids and it stretches my imagination, I've loved it. (If you want to check out my project, you can go to my photography blog here.)

I have lots of interests that I've put aside until my kids are older, like quilting and serious sewing and I mentioned painting as well. One of the interests I find doable with little kids is reading, we can even do it together sometimes! I made it a goal to read 50 books this year and will be finished with that goal within two more books. Exercising is another interest of mine, although I've fallen in and out of that so much. My husband and I started doing the "Insanity" work out, I got about four weeks into it, without seeing very good results. My goal now is to just do something active every day with my kids, and hopefully that will be a good start.

My biggest interest is the computer, so I encourage growth in that area by spending as much time as humanly possible on it... And I'm interesting in being extremely rich, but just haven't quite got it down yet.

Alright then, obviously since this is all about me, I could go on and on... :) But really, let me know how you make time to grow your talents and keep your interests...well, interesting!

What is HAPPENING?!

2011-09-13T10:48:00.000-07:00

Dude. It isn't even 11am and I am ready for this day to be over.

Our school district is striking, today is the first day of no school. So of course I want to sleep in. Do the kids get the memo? Of course not.

I'm laying in bed, and my one year old climbs up to me, and promptly throws his tiny bowling ball hard head right into my closed eye. There was a flash of light, I'm surprised I didn't have a vision or something.

I decide to kick him out and stay in bed and read to recover. He comes up again and promptly throws one of those hard cardboard baby books. RIGHT AT THAT SAME FREAKING EYE. I have a big old lump there and it hurts to blink. I've never had a black eye before, we'll see if my very first is caused by a one year old baby. Kristina, maybe you are right.

I decide to go downstairs in an attempt to not be mauled anymore. The kids are fighting, they are screaming. Besides being tired, hurt, annoyed and frustrated, Aunt Flo came to visit yesterday, so I'm also an evil witch.

Then the phone rings. Its the dentist office, wondering if we're going to make our appointment that started 10 minutes before. Uhhhhhh, I thought it was tomorrow. I had to have told her "I am so sorry!!" fifteen times and she never once said it was okay, she was mad at me. I feel like crap.

I'm cramping. My face hurts. My kids are being crazy, wild animals. One of my children screams at least every two minutes on cue. Someone please make it stop...

School Blues

2011-09-01T10:47:00.000-07:00

I sent two of my kids off to school today. My oldest loves school, she's excited for school, she's responsible and I'm not worried about her at all. My #2 is starting Kindergarden and I AM FREAKING OUT.

You have to understand a couple things about her. First of all, she's tiny. And I mean seriously TINY. Like my three year old is bigger than her, like she's almost six and can seriously wear 3T clothes on her skinny butt. It makes me nervous that she'll be picked on. Plus its just heartbreaking to see her tiny little body sitting at that big table all alone...(control yourself woman!) Secondly, she's super quiet. She has a tiny little voice and when she's upset she curls in a tiny little ball and quietly weeps to herself. WEEPS! I just can't stand the thought of her being upset and crying in the corner where the teacher won't notice. Ugh. Also, the girl is sort of in la-la land, she is creative and funny and just does her own thing, which I love--but it might not translate so well sometimes. I'm so afraid she's going to be lost in there.

Now for the non-negative part:

The other day we went to the park, within minutes she was wrapped up in a blanket with two other little girls. She makes friends easily and she's not worried about dumb stuff. She doesn't usually let things bother her (because she's in la-la land...), so I'm hoping she'll just be kind of go with the flow-ish. She's sweet and cute and loves to do art and wants to write and read, so I'm SURE she'll have a great time.

Its just the not knowing thats making me crazy.

I may have hurried out to the car trying to hold back tears and then cried like a baby before I got home. And I HATE it when people get all emotional for the first day of school, so once again karma has come back to bite me...

See how my one year old comes up to her chest? Yeah.

Oh Yeah, I DO Have a Blog

2011-08-29T17:19:00.000-07:00

Hey guys! Remember how my husband's in the army? And remember how last year he was gone for six months? Yeah. Dark time for me. I didn't blog a lot then either.

Well, I haven't blogged this month because he was in Korea. It wasn't nearly as hard this time because 1) I wasn't pregnant 2) I wasn't post-partum 3) It wasn't six months and 4) We've had some fantastic weather and that really helps me feel happy :)

So he got home Saturday and now some of the pressure I've had this month is lifted and I can think of other things besides: FEED CHILDREN-- PAY BILLS-- DON'T FREAK OUT-- FEED CHILDREN-- PAY MORE FLIPPING BILLS-- BREATH-- etc. etc. and so forth

At least I THINK I can think past that, here's hoping.

We went to the beach today. We've had great weather, but today was a little cooler and overcast, still really nice though so I won't complain because it wasn't raining. We had a little picnic lunch and played in the water and I'm trying to hold on to these last couple days before school starts and I have to have a normal schedule. Good luck with that Melinda...

So I have dinner to do right now but I'm going to leave you with this fantastic picture:

It never fails when I'm trying to get a good shot of her that somehow she ends up coming up with something crazy like this. She's great.

Until next time my friends!

And We Didn't Even Get Popcorn

2011-08-08T17:46:00.000-07:00

I go to the movie theater maybe twice a year.

I do not enjoy the theater. Well, let me clarify, I do not enjoy the other PEOPLE at the theater. Because every other person in the theater besides myself is RUDE and LOUD and ANNOYING.

A few weekends ago my husband and I went to see "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows...part 2"--yes, in a theater. I am a HUGE Potter fan, loved the books, really enjoy the movies and sometimes a movie on the big screen is just so much better than on your regular old tv. So I was desperate to go see the finale to this epic series in the theater and my husband made that happen for me.

This is what we were barraged with: burping. We were surrounded on all sides by disgusting burps every few minutes. You think I'm exaggerating, but I am NOT.

When we first got there, there were only a couple other people seated, so we took the good seats right in the middle of the theater. Bad idea. As more and more people showed up, they squeezed themselves around us. Like right next to us. I like a seat or two as a sort of "cushion of protection" against the weirdos, but this didn't happen. And then it started...

Not the movie. The burping.

The guy next to my husband loudly burps. We look at each other. Seriously? Then he does it again. And again. Then a bigger group sat right behind us, they were a little older and quite loud, and they started burping as well.

It was just ridiculous people. The movie started and it seemed like if there was any sort of quiet moment, that was the time to burp. It was insanity!

So instead of coming away from that thinking I had just seen a fantastic movie, I came away thinking I NEVER WANT TO GO TO THE THEATER AGAIN!!

Boo for dumb people.

Less Money, Mo Problems

2011-07-31T14:12:00.001-07:00

You know what?

I'm tired of being poor. I really REALLY am.

Before I go into this, I will start with a disclaimer: I know there are people in worse off situations than I am. I know that I should be grateful for what I do have. I KNOW. Believe me, I know.

Its just sometimes I get so tired of worrying about how we're going to pay this bill or where the money's going to come from to pay for this that just came out of nowhere. And I'm tired that every penny has to go to something responsible. Maybe sometimes I want to buy something fun, maybe I want to buy some clothes, maybe I want to be frivolous for two minutes without regretting it. Maybe I don't want to have to worry if its going to be okay to go out to dinner or to the zoo, like normal people get to do.

I shouldn't look at other people and compare their situations to mine, but it is SO HARD sometimes. Its like all these people are right there in my face constantly with their big houses and their money and I WANT THAT. I WAAAAAAAANT IT.

People are so judgemental towards people who don't have money too. If I told you I was on food stamps and you saw me at the store buying soda and chips, you would think I'm being irresponsible or wasting that free money right? Well, gosh dang, I can't buy anything, you're going to begrudge me some freaking chips too?! Do I get any sort of indulgence ever?

Honestly, I want to be rich because I want it to just be easy for awhile. There are a bunch of other things already that weigh on me, and I would like the money weight to be lifted.

That would be nice.

Okay, pity party over. I feel like I go through highs and lows where I'm okay with our situation and I realize that money isn't whats important in life, but then when things start to pinch I want an easy solution. And of course, nothing I come up with to make extra money is ever going to be instantaneous and solve all our problems, so I'm stuck feeling overwhelmed by it. Someday I'll figure it out. Or else we'll get rich and I won't have to. I really hope its the second thing... ;)

You Are What You...Hate?

2011-07-24T19:51:00.001-07:00

Does it ever hit you that you're one of those people that does the things you hate about other people?

Do you know what I mean? You're like "I HATE it when people gossip!!" but don't realize how much you gossip yourself? Or you think, "People should really pray and read the scriptures every night!" except for the fact that you don't actually do it yourself. You think you do, but not really.

When my husband was gone last year, all of a sudden I was in charge of ALL the money. I hadn't had to pay tithing in a long time, since my husband always took care of it. Then there was the fact that we didn't start getting any income at all for almost two months (that was fun) so I guess it slipped my mind when the money started coming in. Then I had a conversation with someone about someone not paying tithing who said they were, and I was like "That is SO WRONG!!....wait a second...I HAVEN'T BEEN PAYING TITHING!!!" It wasn't a conscious thing, I just didn't realize I hadn't been doing it.

I got super sunburned yesterday and the day before. I hate chronic sunburners', like seriously, learn to put some sun screen on. It makes me crazy. And here I sit, burnt to a crisp because I didn't have sun screen to put on (the first day) and didn't put extra sun screen on my neck and face (just my arms) the next day. Stupid.

My husband's out of town this week, in Washington DC again. I let it sneak up on me and didn't actually prepare for him being gone, its like my brain is seriously not functioning--even worse than usual. Scary thought. I mean it would be a scary thought if my brain could think. But it can't process anything right now. I blame too much Mountain Dew. "Don't do it kids--it'll melt your brain!!" (Thats a quote by me.)

I'm lazy, and I don't like it. I would do something about it, but I'm too lazy to. And thats the honest truth.

I hate lazy people.

Achy Breaky--I'll Break Your Leg

2011-07-19T16:22:00.000-07:00

Hellllooooo there!

So.

I'm back.

For reals this time.

My computer is fixed and I think I've made it to a happier, less stressful place and I am ready to blog again. I think.

You know what I feel like blogging about? You are so about to find out!

Last night my husband and I watched that "Surprise Homecoming" show. I really didn't think I could stand watching it, I was tearing up bad just watching the commercials. This wasn't planned either, we were just watching "Cake Boss" and this just so happened to come on afterwards, and we were totally sucked into it. It wasn't as hard as I thought it was going to be, especially because Billy Ray Cyrus is the host.

Can I say that man made me crazy the entire show?!

Just starting with how the man looks. He still has a mullet. Which makes me want to punch him in the head. Then he was wearing some ridiculously--and I mean ridiculous--tight pants. With a leather jacket. Gosh what a douche.

So then every time he opened his mouth it was some outrageous crap. At one point he was introducing this soldier during an assembly and was all, "This man is my hero. He is my biggest hero. Please applaud...(pulls out an index card and READS OFF HIS NAME) Cpt. Blah Blah Blah." Are you freaking kidding me?! You couldn't respect this man enough to remember his name?! Then he says some garbage at some point about how he can relate to having a child in a war zone and how hard that is...uhhhhh, he does?! And THEN he said something like "I am so glad I could do this for them." What, you really didn't do anything. They would have a homecoming whether he was there or not, whether it was on tv or not, he really didn't do much of anything. At one point he tried to make some joke about Miley waiting out in the truck and I wanted to kick him in the groin. He just came off as such an idiot. By the end of it, I was irked. I just think the host should be someone who has the tiniest inkling of whats its like to be apart of the military, but its a pretty intense situation and deserves someone that knows how to treat the families with some sensitivity.

Alrighty, that is all. For now.

Rambling Madness

2011-07-12T18:03:00.001-07:00

So I'm back. Not because my computer's fixed or anything, but because I'm bored and...yeah.

We were supposed to be in Utah this week. I don't want to talk about it.

My husband still took the time off work, we're just staying here and doing fun "family" things instead.

Today we took the kids to a nature center, we looked at turtles and snakes, played at a cute little park and took a 1/2 mile walk around a lake with a bridge in the middle. It was fun. (Imagine awesome pictures I took, that I can't load on here because I don't have a computer I can upload them to:)

*picture of kids going down slide*

*picture of turtles resting on a log*

*picture of us walking along a trail*

Then we went to this restaurant we saw featured on "Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives" that my husband's been begging me to go to for months. Its called "Southern Kitchen" and this is what you should expect if you went there:

I smaaaall area to sit at, which will be ridiculously crowded. The crowd will be....(whats another word for ghetto?) yeah, that. Because its located in the heart of Tacoma (if I called it Tacompton, would that help you visualize better?). The service might be slow, but they are very friendly. The food will be pretty good. But to be honest, I would have been just as happy with the fried chicken and mashed potatoes and gravy from KFC. At least then you could eat it at home, and not with some gang member two inches in the chair behind you asking the waitress if they had a liquor license because he needed at drink at 2 in the afternoon...anyway, I think my husband was happy, so thats good.

Then I decided I really was going to dye my hair. It was going to RED and it was GOING TO HAPPEN this time. Do you think it happened this time? No. My hair is stupid and it sucks. And I hate it too. I seriously spent hours last night trying to figure out the best way to get the result I wanted, do you know how many YouTube videos I watched about dying dark hair red?! A LOT, thats how many.

And you know what?!?! I can't even show you guys a stupid picture of my stupid hair because my stupid EXPENSIVE computer quit on me!!!!!! (*heavy panting, because I've totally worked myself up*)

Hey, have you ever noticed when you dye your hair it feels like your brain is swelling out of your skull? Or maybe it feels like your skin is swelling like a giant hive? Anyway, its a weird feeling...and perhaps you shouldn't blog right after you've dyed your hair because it killed a lot of brain cells...

Anyway, I think thats my hint to stop this hot mess...

Mac Daddy

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

I know its been awhile, and I have a valid excuse (not just laziness, which is my usual excuse). My computer is broken. :( Wait now, did you read that right?

MY COMPUTER IS BROKEN!!!!!

My life line, my muse, my best friend, the only one who understands me, my one true love...is on the fritz.

I've been having problems with it freezing up every couple weeks, it will last a day or two and then be fine again. This last week it started freezing up, and it never got better. I was reading the help site and doing some of the things it said when I came across the hard drive, it said something awful. It said: FAILING. ("Copy as many files as you can, and then see a licensed Mac representative.)

So anyway, thats why I've been gone, and thats why I officially lost my mind this last week (the separation was horrible). My husband brought his work laptop home and is letting me use this. Hopefully next time I blog, it will be on my newly mended computer. And pray for me that they'll be able to save all my pictures, otherwise I might honestly lose my sanity. Ugh, I don't even want to think about it.

Yup, I'm Talking About Hair...Again

2011-06-15T09:14:00.000-07:00

So I cut my hair a week and a half ago. It didn't quite turn out how I wanted but its not a big deal. I guess I was hoping for more of a change, but it just doesn't look that different.

So I went out and bought a box of hair dye. I know I should have gone to a professional, but I really just can't afford to pay someone $70 when I can buy a box for $3. I even talked to my friend who's a hairdresser and she showed me the color of hair dye I should buy and told me just to do it myself if I wanted to save money. So I went and bought some.

I was really nervous. When I see other people with the color hair I wanted, I really like it, but trying to picture myself I just couldn't do it. I was afraid I'd look totally weird. But I finally mustered up the courage and I DID IT.

This is how it turned out:

Does this look red/auburn to you?! Nope, it pretty much looks exactly what my hair normally looks like, with a slight reddish tint when the bright light hits it. I would never look at my hair and think "Oh she has red hair!" Nope, its brown. Stupid dark brown that doesn't want to be dyed.

So now I'm angry and annoyed and I think I'm just going to chop it all off short and dye it blonde. And its going to work even if I have to fry my hair to do it.

WIN A TRIP TO PARIS!!

2011-06-08T09:25:00.000-07:00

In 2008 my mom and sister were in a car accident. An older woman pulled out in front of them and hit them head on. My mom received three torn discs in her back, which won't heal even though she's done everything her doctor's said and is a very health conscious person, like the perfect patient. The woman's insurance refused to pay for anything.

You see, that insurance company is Allstate.

If you don't know anything about insurance companies, there are a few you REALLY don't want to have, the worst being Allstate, and others like Nationwide, State Farm and AIG.

If you read up on any of these companies you would be appalled. Despite the fact that its what their company is paid to do, they will do anything not to help when its needed. They want to pay NOTHING out, they want to keep all the money.

My mom wouldn't accept that, so she pushed the issue and they sent her to arbitration. The arbitrator said he would award my mom the highest amount he could ($50,000) and would give her more if he could. Of course, Allstate wouldn't accept that, so they took it to court.

Here's the thing, while in court, no one can say anything about Allstate or the arbitration. They made it look like my mom was suing the little old lady that hit her. Who was a police officer. Yeah. They also had their doctor do an "exam" (where he ignored what my mom said, didn't even look at her MRI and basically didn't do a dang thing), even though my mom had FIVE doctors saying what she had, this guy came in, lied and the jury believed him. What have we come to in America? Where our courts protect the wrong and make the people out to be liars. The doctor they used was kicked out of another state for malpractice, works for L&I and was being sued from a previous case for making an injury out to be less than it was, but none of that was allowed to be said in court. WHY? The lawyer for Allstate lied his freaking head off and then had the nerve to go up to my mom and say "No hard feelings huh?" afterward. I don't know how people sleep at night.

And my mom, who is the most honest person I know was called a liar and irresponsible and ripped to pieces. And now has thousands of dollars of court fees, besides the medical fees she'll have for the rest of her life. Its sickening.

You should know: don't support Allstate--they will NOT support you. Think about it, if you bought a shirt from a store, but they refused to actually give you the shirt, would you sit back and be okay with it? I don't understand how an insurance company can refuse to do their job and then be PROTECTED in court about it.

Okay, I think I got some of it out, but I'm still so mad about it. Its just wrong.

Now I think there was something about Paris in the title? I know, that was way tricky. But 'Oh Happy Day' is having a contest to win a trip for two to Paris. Amazing. If I won, I would take my mom. :)

The Weather Isn't the Only Thing Gray Around Here

2011-06-06T10:43:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago I was braiding my older sister's hair and noticed she had a couple gray hairs. I was a little shocked since she's not quite thirty yet. She was all "Oh yeah, I've had some gray for awhile..." all nonchalant and whatever. So it got me thinking (see: obsessing) if I have any gray hairs. I looked and saw nothing, asked my husband if he saw anything: nope.

Then the other day I was sitting in my car putting make up on. I looked in the mirror and behold what did I see?!

A GRAY HAIR!!

You know what I honestly think? I focused so much on if I would get a gray hair, my body responded and grew one.

I suck.

You know who else sucks? Our new neighbors.

Oh yeah.

Our seriously crappy old neighbors moved out (actually were kicked out--they were that crappy), and were replaced by people JUST. LIKE. THEM.

They smoke outside my front door. They BBQ at 9 o'clock at night. Play their music super loud all day long and into the night. They have a dog thats even louder than the old neighbor's dog, that will probably poop on only our lawn like the last one. And they've only been here TWO DAYS. No wonder I'm getting gray hair.

Don't worry, I'm going to go look at a house today and hopefully we will be out of here by the end of this month.

Pray for me.

And Now...A Letter

2011-05-26T09:03:00.000-07:00

Dear Utahns,

I know you've been having a lot of rain and bad weather lately, and I'm sorry about that. Who am I kidding, I am not one bit sorry. I've noticed a little something about Utahns, and that is: you complain about the weather--A LOT. Every Spring there is the obligatory "What's with this SNOW Utah?! Don't you know its the end of March?!" Dude, the weather does this EVERY year, when are you going to get used to it? I remember one year it snowed in flippin' JUNE, and I remember saying those same things then too. But now that I'm not in the middle of the Utah world, I've noticed that Facebook status's from Utah constantly say the same thing (see above quote). Now for ME, I can complain about the weather all I want because I live in Washington, which really does have horrible weather. At least Utah actually gets a great summer, so boo. Just thought I'd let you know.

Someone who's a little bitter about the weather and maybe slightly hypocritical,
~Melinda

Sip of the Crazy Life

2011-05-23T09:20:00.000-07:00

My three year old just had a melt down over juice.

He said "Mommy, can I have apple juice in a cup pwease?"

So I got him some apple juice in a cup.

Simple enough right?

NO!

He wanted apple juice in a SIPPY cup. So he sat there and stomped and cried and I said sorry, but I already got you juice, drink it or don't.

Then he laid on the floor and very pathetically moaned, "I want my daddy." over and over. He even turned to his sister to make sure he made his point, "Maddie...I want my daaaaddy! waaah!"

It was ridiculous.

Over JUICE!

Of course now he's playing toys and laughing his head off, but who knows where we'll be in another five minutes. I live with a flipping' crazy person.

Peach Fuzz

2011-05-18T09:31:00.000-07:00

All the boys in my house got haircuts last night. Yes, all three boys did, which means my one year old got his first haircut last night.

I cried.

I have never cried cutting my kids hair before. But do you know why I cried?

Not because he had beautiful sweet baby curls and now they were gone. Not because he looks ugly. Not because I miss his longer hair (it wasn't really long in the first place).

I cried because I didn't put a guard on at all. So after that first swipe, I saw that I had pretty much shaved him bald. Completely BALD.

I couldn't take it back after the first go, so then I cried for a minute and kept on shaving. He sort of looks like a little cancer patient. You can see all the veins on his head, the little dent where his soft spot is, everything. Basically he looks like a giant peach.

Its growing on me now, because heck its just hair and it will grow back. But that "what have I done?!?!" feeling last night, was not nice.

I should probably care more about my three year old's hair since he can NOT hold still and he has long pieces all over his head, but no, who cares about that?

Hey, Handy Manny right now is talking about haircuts! Weird. Do you ever think your electronics are spying on you? No...yeah, me neither...

Weird or Just Plain Funny?

2011-05-13T11:14:00.000-07:00

I had a meeting last night and when I got home--waaay past bedtime mind you--my husband had given our one year old some fruit snack. Yes, fruit snacks. The baby was such a ridiculous sticky mess, he honest to goodness couldn't get his fingers unstuck from each other. I wiped him up as good as I could and kept looking at his face, something was off a little. His bottom lip looked swollen! I asked my husband if he had gotten bonked in the mouth or something? No, he hadn't. So what was wrong? On closer inspection, his face was so sticky that his bottom lip was stuck to the skin underneath it. Kind of like Bubba Gump. For real. His lip was stuck to his chin. It threw me for a loop for the rest of the night, it was just so weird/gross/icky/odd.

I think its hilarious today.

I've been trying to stop nursing for like a month now. Its going...okay. I have definitely cut back, and he is taking a bottle better; but he REALLY wants to nurse still. Anyway, last night was a hard night for the boy and I think I ended up nursing him on one side three times. And NO times on the other side. One of my boobs is seriously huge and rock hard. The other is tiny and deflated. It is the weirdest thing I've seen since...well last night with the lip thing.

Its sort of hilarious to me as well.

Hope you guys have a funny weekend and not as weird a one as mine is starting out as! :)

Some Seriously Deep Crap

2011-05-12T09:40:00.000-07:00

I was watching America's Next Top Model the other day and one of the girls won a challenge about being a good role model and another one of the girls was really upset because she felt that girl didn't deserve it. She felt like the girl was fake, and pretty much she was getting away with a lie. She felt justified in saying something--almost like she had to say something--because she was TELLING THE TRUTH and that person WAS LYING.

Tyra (O Wise Crazy One) said something along the lines of, you have to be professional, and its one of the hardest things to keep your mouth shut when you feel like you should say something about someone's character because you need to tell the truth.

Its really is so frustrating. We're taught our whole lives to stand up for whats right, to do the right thing even when its hard, to tell the truth and be honest; and yet, we get to be adults and thats not really what people want you to do. They want you to look past their faults, they want you to get over yourself, they want you to mind your own business, they want you to keep your mouth shut. Nobody likes a tattle tale. And yet we train our kids their whole lives to BE a tattle tale. To let us know whats going on, to not keep secrets.

What would you do if you knew some personal information about someone, and they were telling your best friend complete and total lies, then your friend came to you and was talking about it to you? Do you keep your mouth shut? Do you set your friend straight? Do you share, do you keep quiet?

There's so many different sides to this. The person who you know is lying, now says you're judgmental. Doesn't matter that what they did was horrible, you're judging them so that means YOU'RE bad. Somehow when you "tattle" on someone, no matter how true it is, you get made to be the bad person. You're a gossiper, you're intolerant, you're mean.

Maybe you're not trying to judge someone, maybe you're just trying to be honest. Maybe you were raised by a mother who despised lying, and its hard for you to take any of it. I know I was. I HATE when people lie. Hate it. So its hard not to want to stand up and say "THAT ISN'T TRUE!!" But is it my place? Is it right?

Why is it so hard to sit back and watch someone "get away" with something? Its not my place to inflict justice on someone, but it sure is hard not to want to sometimes! Do you struggle with this? Do you wish people would stop lying and just take responsibility for their actions? Or does it not bug you, let people live their lives and thats that?

What do you think?

Parlez Vous?

2011-05-09T15:17:00.000-07:00

When I was in 6th grade, we had to learn some Spanish basics. We learned colors and simple phrases and...I don't know, whatever means "the basics." Obviously, I didn't learn much because the only phrase I remember at all is:

Donde esta el bano? (And even that I didn't learn well because I spelled "bano" as "banyo" and had to google it to get it right. Doh.)

Which means:

Where is the bathroom?

At some point in the school year, I thought it would be funny during Spanish Time to go up to the teacher and say "Donde esta el bano?" and give him a good little chuckle. You know because when you're twelve, anything to do with the bathroom is hilarious. Heck, it still is most of the time...at least to my husband. Who I wonder about his maturity sometimes...which is probably about the level of a twelve year old..

Anyway, I went up to him and with a big goofy grin on my face delivered the words in espanol.

He glanced at me and told me to go ahead and go to the bathroom.

Not a crack of a smile. Nothin'...

As I trudged down the hallway I realized two things:

a. Not everyone gets my sense of humor.

and

b. I really didn't have to go to the bathroom.

I think its Called Writers Block, You know, if You're a Professional

2011-05-06T09:28:00.000-07:00

I'm trying to come up with a blog post. I'm watching 'America's Next Top Model' instead.

Believe me. I love blogging, it was like blog at first sight. But something is just missing lately.

I have no desire to blog.

I'll check blogs a little, I'll try and comment and sometimes thats even hard to do. Then I think about blogging and I'm just like...blaaahhhhg.

So sorry everyone, this is my very sad attempt at getting back into it. Maybe I'll have something better next week? :>

The Eensy Weensy Spider

2011-04-19T08:39:00.000-07:00

I think I ate a spider.

I woke up yesterday morning with a bite on one of my fingers. I didn't think much of it until the evening when I noticed that the corner of my mouth had been sore all day. There was a red spot there and it was getting more and more tender.

I get up this morning. The red spot on my mouth is getting bigger and hurts even more than yesterday.

I would say its a cold sore but I've never had one of those, and no one else in my family has either. So how would I just magically get a cold sore?

So thats when I came to the conclusion that I must have eaten a spider, and right before it went in my mouth it bit me.

"They" say that we eat an average of 8 spiders in our lifetime. I have NO idea how anyone could possibly know that, unless they watch someone sleep every night of their life, but thats what they say.

It doesn't make sense to me though, I mean when do you see spiders crawl on people's faces? They usually stay way up in the corner of the ceiling. Are they watching you, waiting for you to fall asleep so they can commit suicide? I can just see the thinking, "Hmmmmm, of all the places I can crawl, I think I'll go in this gaping hole thats forcefully blowing air at me..."

It just doesn't make sense.

So anyway, I might have a cold sore. But I really do want to know who could have spread this to me, so I can set some spiders loose on them one night.

Its a Wonderful Day in the Neighborhood

2011-04-06T20:44:00.000-07:00

Hey.

Is been awhile.

I'm going for a record of starting each blog post apologizing for not blogging enough, so you know.

I just haven't felt like I've had anything to share lately. I've been doing stuff here and there, I've got stuff going on but I haven't felt like blogging really. Whats got me here then, compelling me to blog?

Nothing like barf to get your "juices flowing". (Wow. That was so gross, the visual I gave myself with that!)

Anyway, the barf thing. I went outside yesterday morning to throw something in the recycle can, and there on my front porch (that I share with the neighbors, as their house is attached to my house) was barf. Someone had thrown up all over the porch and then they had. left. it. there.

I was mortified. I was disgusted. I was shocked.

I went back out a little bit later to get my mail. Still there.

Pick my daughter up from school.

STILL THERE.

At this point, my mind is completely blown.

I mean, I shouldn't be too shocked right? These are the people that smoke like its the sixties, put their trash in MY trash can, throw parties every weekend until the wee hours of the morning, have who knows how many people living there, have a huge white poodle that growls at my kids, and conveniently wake me up every Friday night at 2:30 for a reason I'd rather not share. But BARF?! I just don't get it.

Who seriously barfs all over in front of their own front door and leaves it there?! I even heard the kids come home from school, walk past it, and still NOTHING HAPPENED. Here's the problem (you know BESIDES that there's a bunch of barf outside my door), my daughter was going to go to a friend's after school, and then her mom was going to drop her off. On MY front porch. That porch, the one with the BARF EVERYWHERE. So when my husband got home from work yesterday at 5 PM (he said the barf was there when he left for work at 6 am), I made him go out there and spray it off.

Because apparently not only are our neighbors rude and inconsiderate, they're also incredibly disgusting and unsanitary.

It boggles the mind, it does. Good thing we're going to move. As soon as we find a place to live. And then pack EVERYTHING up (by myself most likely). Bah.

Do you have neighbors that drive you crazy?

Yay and Nay

2011-03-28T15:47:00.000-07:00

Guess what guys?! I WON SOMETHING!!!!!

WHOOO!!

Okay, I seriously have the worst streak of luck when it comes to winning stuff. There will be a blog give away, and only like 5 comments and I will still not win. Boo. But its finally happened for me and I couldn't be happier!! WEeee!

Melanie J. over at Write Stuff, wrote a book. YES. I know! She wrote a book AND its been published. And since I am on a conquest to read 50 books this year, it is just perfect that I won her book! Pretty awesome right?!

So happy. *long, deep sigh*

You know what I am NOT happy about though? Something completely unrelated to what I started with of course!

The last two times my mother-in-law's babysat my kids, she's swatted my baby. My BABY.

The first time, he was getting into one of her cupboards over and over and over, so after awhile she swatted his hand.

The last time, he kept going up the stairs and apparently that deserves a spanking on the bottom.

AND apparently my mother-in-law thinks its quite funny. Like its the cutest little thing to watch his lip quiver and cry because she HIT him.

What would you do? My relationship with her is already strained (more on my end than hers), I don't really need another reason not to like her. I WANT to like her, believe me I do. And sometimes I actually really do. And I'd like to keep it that way, but not at the expense of a little 11 month old who I care much more about. (edit: Kristina asked if my husband could talk to her, which is what I would normally do, but he's out of town. And she's supposed to babysit TOMORROW. So yeah. Poo.)

At least I have a book to throw at her if things don't get better...is it a hard back Melanie?

(Did you see that?! Did you see how I totally came back around to the beginning to wrap that up. Awesome.)

The Longest Night of My Life

2011-03-25T10:58:00.001-07:00

I was scared. I laid in bed shivering and trying to calm my nerves. It was dark and only a few lights could be seen in my bedroom, except the clock which brightly revealed the time: 1 am.

I had finished reading my book a bit after midnight and knew it was playing games inside my head. The book was suspenseful, reminiscent of The Hunger Games. In fact, VERY similar to The Hunger Games, except even more gruesome and even more detailed. I was trying to calm my nerves and go to sleep, but sleep would not come.

I kept thinking: go check the back door. I was putting off getting up because I knew, I knew, I had locked it earlier that day. But since sleep was still not coming, and the thought would not leave, I slowly crept out of bed. And slowly walked down the stairs, watching for shadows moving, trying to keep calm and not let my imagination run away with me. I crept through the living room, looking at the shadows and reassuring myself as to what they were. Okay, there's the couch. There's the flowers for my birthday. There's the kitchen table. I made my way toward the sliding glass door, moved the hanging blinds out of the way and looked down at the lock. It was where it should be to indicate that the door was indeed locked. I pulled at the door just to be sure and gasped as it slid open!

You see, sometimes when you lock the door, if it isn't pushed all the way tight the lock doesn't catch and although it looks like its locked, you can still open the door. And that is precisely what had happened.

I slid the door shut tight this time, locked it and pulled to make sure it really had caught. It had and I quickly made my way back upstairs, trying to keep the scary thoughts at bay. It didn't work. By the time I was back in bed, I was shaking and having trouble breathing. What if someone had been in the house?! What if they were in there right now?! What if they wanted to kill me and my little sweet family?! I tried to reassure myself, No, if they wanted to hurt me they could've done it downstairs when I was alone. You would have felt a terrible feeling before going downstairs if something was wrong. But I feel terrible now! But thats because you've worked yourself up. On and on and on I battled with myself.

I stayed awake listening for any sign of an intruder. I would slowly start to dose off, and then wake with a gasp at the slightest sound, terrified and alert again. I dosed and jumped back awake all night long.

Of course nothing happened because I'm here writing this down for you right now, but I have to say I am thankful for whatever thought that wouldn't let me sleep, to go down and check that door. Even if it meant a night of fitful sleeping, because I would feel a lot worse if I hadn't and someone HAD tried to come in our house later that night and was able to. *shiver*

And that is how I know I will make it to my next birthday.

(It was my birthday yesterday, what a way to end the day huh?!)

(My stomach's all clenched just writing this. That is the last scary book I'm reading for a long time!)

Yes, yes, I'm Talking about Being Tired Again. It Keeps Happening.

2011-03-22T12:14:00.000-07:00

I'm tired. I know I say that a lot, but thats only because IT'S SO TRUE. I'm really really REALLY tired.

For a couple reasons: first up, I've been reading a lot, and even though I promise myself I will stop reading at a decent hour, I always end up...indecent. I mean, I've been staying up until midnight like the last three nights, reading. I know its stupid, but by golly, it is the ONLY time its quiet around here and I want some freaking peace.

The midnight thing wouldn't be such a big deal if once I finally went to bed I could actually sleep, but noooooo. There's the second problem: I have children. This causes me much more of a problem than just lack of sleep, but we're only talking about this one for today. Every once in awhile my two year old wakes up and screams, or has a bad dream or whatever; so every few nights he wakes me up and I have to go in and figure out how to get him back to sleep OR I get to change all his sheets because he peed the bed OR I get to lay in bed and hear him scream for me if my husband tries to go in there so I end up getting up anyway. Then I also have a baby. A baby who will NOT take a pacifier. Who when you try to give him a pacifier gets very ANGRY. Who thinks that his MOMMY should be his pacifier. I HATE THIS. He sleeps alright the first half of the night (you know the half that I wasted reading) but the second half he wakes up all night and screams and wants me to feed him, but he wants to just keep going and going and it doesn't matter how long I've nursed him, he will SCREAM a lot once I cut him off. And then he'll be back at it an hour later. It makes me not like him very much.

Sometimes my husband snores, or pulls the blankets off me or talks in his sleep.

Also, we have stupid loud neighbors.

Combine all these things together and you get my nights: Nights where I am woken up approximately 53 times and I'm ready to kill someone--or myself--at any given moment. Its so lovely.

I am so at my wits end I'm ready to do something desperate, I don't know what that would be, just SOMETHING...thats desperate. Because I'm feeling desperate. And tired. And like someone punched me in the forehead and between the eyes. And I don't want to hear the comments that say this will never get better, because I can handle getting up every once in awhile, I can handle listening for teenagers to get home, I can handle my husband talking in his sleep (this one I quite enjoy actually). What I can't handle is screaming baby in my ear, seventeen times in four hours. Maybe I just need some ear plugs...what do you think?

Cleaning is Stupid

2011-03-15T20:51:00.000-07:00

Hey, its me again. Blaaaaaah.

As I was cleaning today I was wondering a few things, mostly:

"What is the point of doing this?!?!?!"

I mean to do the same thing every single day over and over, just pick up messes. Its so dumb. And I don't wanna do it!! Wah wah waaah! *foot stomping*

I also thought that the best time to clean is about the half hour or hour before my husband gets home. Because not only then does it look like I got SOMETHING done, if I did it earlier in the day you wouldn't even know it because it would be a mess again by the time he got home.

Why are kids so disgusting? The things I find sometimes makes me want to hurl they are so mind boggling. I don't remember being so gross when I was a kid.

Yesterday my 11 month old got into one of my cupboards (thats supposed to be "child locked") and SHATTERED three glass pyrex baking bowls. They were stacked inside each other and when he pulled them off the shelf and they landed on the floor--BOOM. Glass everywhere.

I need some sunshine (or happy pills, whatever works) to get me out of this funk. I have zero energy, I am so dead tired. Maybe when spring FINALLY shows up, I'll feel like blogging again. I hope so.

And about the hair cutting. I still don't know. I want to stick it out but I SO don't. Good thing I'm indecisive, because while I wait my hair keeps growing. So at least something is moving forward around here. Or downward. Whatever.

EMERGENCY! I mean, not really, but still.

2011-03-08T21:29:00.000-08:00

AGH guys. AGH!

I WANT TO CUT MY HAIR!!!

I am so frustrated right now. I know this is the sort of thing people crave in a blog post: my hair and whether I should cut it or not, but its whats on my mind so...sorry.

The plan was to grow it out. I really wanted to grow my hair out LOOOONG, like Kyle from The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills:

Her hair is gorgeous and long and luscious. I haven't had long hair for a few years and thought it was time to change things up. Plus I've always loved styling hair (done so many prom hair-do's I couldn't tell you the number), and I love doing fun stuff in my own hair so it would be fun for it to be long and actually fix it all "fancy".

[I don't really have any pictures to show you of me with long hair, EDIT: ah my sister sent me some:]

But I LOVE my short hair. I just love it. LOVE IT. LOOOOVE it.

I miss it. I saw a picture of me last year with short hair and I wanted to take a pair of scissors to my head right then.

I want to do this:

Or maybe something like this:

And you know what? I want the blonde. I WANT IT.

[Here's a couple of me with short hair:]

I'm trying to figure out if I should stay strong and grow it out. Get a cute "middle length" cut for now to hold me over (I'm afraid to get near a stylist for fear of shouting "just shave it all off!!"), maybe color it for a change, or should I just cut it short?

So tell me dear friends, what should I do? It is very much appreciated.

Gloooooooomy

2011-03-02T09:03:00.000-08:00

Oh my I just do not have the energy to blog, or exercise, or do laundry, or mother...

I am so tired all the time for some reason and on top of that my motivation level has been...meh.

I think its this weather.

We had snow here last week. It never snows here and I actually really loved it for the most part. It was the best kind of snow, where it stays on the ground but the roads weren't bad. Perfect! But its been super gray and oh so COLD and now that the snow is gone we've had really stormy, windy weather. Also very gray again.

I think it makes me tired and depressed when its gray for weeks at a time. The sun just peaked out and I was like "HAAAALLELUJAAAAH!!!" and angels were singing and a single tear formed in the corner of my eye while I twirled slowly around in a circle but then the sun went back behind a cloud and I feel sad again.

I need spring to get here ASAP.

Hows the weather in your part of the woods? (And if you say sunny and 80, I will kill myself.)

Tag--You're it!

2011-02-24T14:09:00.000-08:00

Well, I haven't done a tag in a veeeerrry long time! Since Ginger tagged me and I love her, I will do it! And also because its an easy one and won't take much time! :)

1- Four places I go.
*the grocery store

*church

*to bed

*to the bathroom (Actually...pardon me for a moment...)

2- Four favorite smells.
*definitely baby breath (I also like newborn baby poop smell, but I seem to be the only one who REALLY likes it)

*bleach--mmmmm!

*I love Bath & Body Works "Sensual Amber"--oh my goodness, smells so good!

*baked goods

3- Four favorite TV shows/movies.
*Dirty Dancing

*The Real Housewives (any one of them)

*Casino Royale

*Avatar: The Last Airbender (the cartoon, definitely not the movie!)

4- Four recommendations.
*Don't complain (too much) about your life, someone always has it worse.

*Be honest with yourself, no excuses.

*You will always feel bad for doing something wrong, but you will never regret doing whats right.

*Find things to laugh about all day long!

I tag:

*Whoever feels like doing this! :)

P.S. If I find the time to edit these two videos, I will post my husband talking in his sleep again--SO FUNNY! But they take awhile to put together and I'm in the middle (well, end really) of a book series I'd like to finish and am still dealing with very sick, very cranky baby. BUT, its something to look forward to right?

Ups and Downs

2011-02-22T13:45:00.000-08:00

It was a holiday yesterday. Yup, didn't know if you knew that but it was. We didn't really do anything especially fun, but it was a day off so I'm not complaining.

It throws my whole week off though because it felt like Saturday, so today feels like Sunday--not Tuesday. Funny how in your mind, a day can feel a certain way.

I took pictures of my cousin's baby this weekend, see:

But I learned something afterwards about myself. I shouldn't do photography. I have a problem with asking people to pay me. I don't have enough confidence in what I'm doing, but I can't get better without more practice. Also, I don't like people. Just kidding, I just can get uncomfortable around certain kinds of people. So if I'm having a bad day, its really hard for me to put myself out there and/or deal with people. Not really the making of a good photographer huh?

Also I get really overwhelmed looking at "real" photographers work. I used to get inspired (I do sometimes still) but more than anything I think, I will never be that good. Or I won't be that good unless I can buy a better camera/equipment. Its so stupid. I annoy myself.

You know how someone can tell you something about themselves and its so easy to see how they should change or what they should do? Yeah, except when its yourself its actually HARD to do, even when you know whats wrong. Boo.

Okay, my little wah me party is done.

On the flip side, I had my Relief Society lesson on Sunday and it went really well. I love teaching the women, they are so awesome and participate and share the most awesome insights! It went so well that I felt good the whole rest of the day. Hooray for that!

So how do you guys develop your talents? (Even when your confidence is low?)

Dragging...

2011-02-18T11:31:00.000-08:00

Ugh. I hit a wall today.

I'm sitting here in my "workout" clothes (pajamas) with my tennis shoes on and my hair pulled back, my bottle of water sitting ready. I even turned the workout video on.

And watched it for a full minute before I turned it back off and sat down here.

I just DON'T WANT TO WORK OUT TODAY.

I haven't been feeling like this at all, in fact, I've been looking forward to it every day and even the ONE day off we had (Sunday) I actually wanted to work out that day too (but didn't of course).

But MAN, I just don't feel like it today. I'm TIRED. And I'm TIRED. AND some ladies from church are coming to visit and I wasted my morning reading a book and now I feel pressured and I don't want to take the 40 minutes to exercise and then the extra time to shower and get ready after that.

WAAH. WAh. Wah. WAH.

What do you guys do when you lose your motivation?

I'm going to eat some cookies while I wait for you to motivate me. Thankyouverymuch.

Valentine's Shmalentines

2011-02-15T09:18:00.000-08:00

I'm not a huge celebrator. I mean I like to celebrate holidays and stuff, but for some reason I just don't go all out. Not for birthdays, or anniversaries or most anything. Really the only holiday I decorate for is Christmas. A tiny bit for Halloween. I feel like my life is just too crazy to deal with the other stuff. And someday I'll be able to do it. Someday.

This is the extent of my Valentine's efforts:

Yup. Thats it. I did make a nice big dinner and dessert, but the heart marshmallows were the most Valentinesy that I got. What a loser.

I hope you guys had a fantastic Valentine's Day full of conversation hearts and kisses!

See Me in Pictures!

2011-02-11T11:25:00.000-08:00

I'm sorry I'm just going to have to brag for a minute here. Because LOOK at this baby:

(My husband's hot.)

My cousin just got her wedding pictures back from her photographer and she sent these to me of my sweet wittle baby. Gosh I want to eat him.

She also had these:

These are my sisters. I love them.

I'm still waiting for the pictures of me and my husband. I hope she adds those soon!

Thought it would be a nice change to see some pictures today. I have a bunch of projects I'm wanting to do but that sweet baby up there has a cold so pretty much all I can do is hold him. Aw well, there will always be projects to do.

Also, day 5 of Insanity down. I'm still feeling insane. It is HARD. My husband's lost like 3 lbs or more, I've lost NONE. Suck. But I feel good, you know, in a 'I should've lost 5 lbs in sweat just in today alone' kind of way. :)

EDIT:
This is the outfit I'm wearing. This is an old picture, but still the same outfit. The only difference is, I didn't tuck the shirt in and I had different shoes on. Both the top and the skirt are from Victoria's Secret. I love their clothes.

INSANITY

2011-02-08T13:45:00.000-08:00

I can barely type. I am so super duper sore and tired.

Let me start at the beginning so you can know every detail instead of me just telling you the simple version. You're welcome.

My husband struggles with weight issues. He's not overly bad, but he's constantly trying to lose some weight and struggles to either get it off or keep it off. We recently found out he has high cholesterol and since his dad has been on cholesterol medicine since a young age, he didn't want to have to do that so young. SOoooooo...we've been trying to make some changes here.

Health wise.

It sucks.

You know why it sucks?

Because we got "Insanity" and started that this week. And although we're only on DAY TWO, I think I'm going to die.

Here, you need to see this to understand:

THAT is what we're doing. I got up at 5AM this morning to work out! What has happened to me?! I don't EVER get up early, BUT I am doing it to get in shape, to support my husband and to feel good. Although I really don't feel good right now. You know, when it hurts to laugh. Or move. Or BREATHE.

Wish me luck that we don't die this week.

Dumpster Diving

2011-02-05T13:57:00.000-08:00

My husband has been gone all day. Its 2 o'clock and he's JUST getting home. Its like this every Saturday. Do you know why? Because he's the athletic director and he HAS to be at basketball every stinking Saturday. On top of him being gone he brings a huge garbage bag home full of stinky jerseys, that yours truly gets to wash.

His calling sucks. For me.

We got our income taxes last week and I want to get some fun stuff with just a teeny bit of it. You know because we were responsible and paid our car off and any credit cards and we have some left over and I WANT TO BUY FUN STUFF. Dang it. I do. This is the thing, I want to do some fun projects but I'm still not going to spend a lot of money, its just not my way. So here I am, perusing the fun craft blogs out there and I'm here to tell you those ladies are insane. Redoing your pantry? Fine, get it organized. But having a specially decorating with ruffles jar for your dog food. You've officially gone to crazy town. So anyway, I also think those ladies are liars. They're all:

"Look at this awesome project I did! I found this china hutch on craigslist for $5 dollars! And everything else was FREEEEEE!!"

Bull crap, people, bull crap. They must have looked on craigslist every day for a year to find that deal. Because believe you me, I look for good deals ALL THE TIME and the furniture around here is nowhere near that cheap. Its ridiculous. Either that or the crafters I'm reading all live in Utah where good deals flow like milk and honey. Because everywhere else in the country, you ain't finding a china hutch for $5.

And really, you'd think I could find something good when the Tacoma/Seattle area has like 3.4 million people. They must just think their crap is worth more than other people's crap. People are pretty weird here. (Yes, me included...)

So wish me luck in coming up with something soon, or I just might be forced to go digging in trash or something to actually find something for a "good deal."

Stuffedy Stuff Stuff

2011-02-01T13:11:00.000-08:00

Thanks for listening to my cry baby boo boo post yesterday, I actually feel better for writing it so I'm not sorry for doing it. And by the way, those nylons were freaking cute. Like this:

(Except they were white, the white picture you couldn't really see at all. Cute though right?)

Anyway, just a couple thoughts for you today:

*Cleaning my girls' room last night (which was ridiculously filthy, I mean just sickening) I kept feeling like the room was mocking me. Like "ha ha! This sucks so bad for you! And there's still so much more to do!!" *pointing finger at me*

*My girls tried to "help" clean with me, but their idea of cleaning is very skewed. They pick something up, play with it, laugh about how long its been since they've seen it, exclaim "HEY! I've been looking for this for forever!", read books, color. I've seriously failed as their mother.

*I remember doing the exact same thing as a kid.

*They told me probably twenty times "I love you mom" while I was cleaning and I said "Yeah, I would love me too since I'M DOING ALL THE WORK!" Thats why I'm a good mom.

*I took my oldest to the dentist this morning, and I felt sick out of nervousness for her. I hate the dentist. I never want to go there again. She thought it was awesome.

*My mother in law came to stay with the other kids while I took her to the dentist, I was worried that the kids would be bad since they'd been cranky and screaming all morning. She said that the baby didn't even whimper once, and they were perfect. Of course as soon as I walk in the door, they are SCREAMING and FIGHTING and AWFUL. Why do kids do that? (Unless she lied and they were horrible, but from what it looked like, they were pretty great. Even folded laundry with her.)

*Is it as weird for you as it is for me when someone folds your underwear for you?

*A friend of mine stopped by earlier but I was on the phone and didn't hear her knocking, so do you think my kids come tell me? No, they spend a couple minutes trying to unlock the door and then I hear my little girl say "Okay, come in." And I'm like "Ruh?!" (picture Scooby Doo right here) Obviously the millions of times I've said not to open the door, Mommy will open the door has really sunk in. Little boogers.

Okay, until next time. Peace out.

Tarnish on a Bright Penny

2011-01-31T11:23:00.000-08:00

My oldest got baptized this weekend. It was amazing. It was lovely. It was exciting. It was neat. It was long and exhausting. :)

We had such a great weekend, and my daughter just blows me away sometimes. Its good to see your kids in a different light sometimes, and realize how good they are and how amazing they are and how lucky you are to have them as part of your family. It was a good day like that. She looked so beautiful in her white dress. (I would add a picture here except I was a horrible mom and didn't take one. I will though. I will dress her back up and take a bunch of beautiful pictures of her and totally redeem myself!)

The sad thing though is that when I think about yesterday the one thing that sticks out to me is this little run-in I had with my grandpa. My grandpa is getting old, he is having a lot of health problems and over the last ten years his personality has just taken worse and worse turns, along with his health. Lately he's been falling down a lot and we're all worried about how much time he has left.

So why do I want to avoid him?

It makes me feel awful because I love my grandpa very much. I always felt like I tried really hard to take what he said and forget it and to still try to see who he really is and I always tried to do nice things for him and that he got that. But this last year since we've been home I can hardly stand it. A few years ago, he would say horrible or embarrassing things, and it would be okay because I knew he was just trying to be funny even if it wasn't. It was more of an innocent thing, I knew he wasn't trying to be mean, he was trying to make a joke. But the last year? He's trying to take me aside and tell me what he doesn't like about me.

So back to the baptism. After everything is done and everyone is standing up and hugging and I'm thanking people for coming and its such a nice feeling, my little grandpa hobbles over and I hug him and say I'm so happy he could come and what does he say to me? He tells me that he wishes I would go home and take off the silly nylons I'm wearing and burn them because I look ridiculous. I'm shocked. I'm trying to make the best of the situation and still let him know that it hurts my feelings, so I ask him why is he saying that right now when we've had such a special evening, its not the right time to be saying that. He tells me he wasn't trying to hurt my feelings but I look so ridiculous. I try and make a joke and say "Well grandpa, how about we make a deal? You worry about whats on your feet and I'll worry about whats on mine?" And he says "Well, I'm just wearing normal socks."

I just had to turn and walk away. Except after that whole evening where I barely teared up, I started bawling. I think I scared a couple people even. But it just hurt me so much that he would say that and besides making me feel picked on, he ruined that whole moment for me. And although I shouldn't let it and I should know better, that he's old and sick and his mind isn't the same as it used to be, that I shouldn't hold it against him, it still hurt me. And its heartbreaking. On so many levels, heartbreaking that I let it bother me, heartbreaking that he's sick, heartbreaking that our relationship has changed so much. Its just sad.

And I'm sad because it STILL bothers me today. It still stings that he said that. Maybe I sound vain; like its just a pair of nylons, who cares? But its just not the grandpa I know, and it hurts. It builds on other things he's said and I don't know how to deal with it. Talking to him doesn't work, he just isn't all there, so I guess I have to suck it up and keep that in mind. I just had a little thought...maybe I want to avoid him because I don't want my good memories of him tainted by these bad ones, I don't want these memories at all. When he does pass, I want to think of him in a good way, I don't want to think of these past few years that are sad and mean and sometimes awful. I also don't want to think the last few years of my grandpa's life, I spent trying to stay away from him. Its hard.

But really guys, before that situation, it was so neat to watch my baby get baptized and see her so excited and responsible and ready to grow up. Make her stop growing up please!

Beach Pictures

2011-01-21T12:47:00.000-08:00

So here's some pictures from the beach the one nice day we've had this week, now its all doom and gloom again. Seriously, its so gray here all the time its super depressing. So even though it was pretty cold, it was great to be outside in the sun. Plus, the little boy got to get some energy out and thats always a plus! Anyway, hope you enjoy the pictures:

Just a Quick Hello!

2011-01-19T09:44:00.000-08:00

I know. I haven't posted in forever. I'm still tired and the baby is JUST starting to get back to normal. But I'm still tired.

I even went to bed at 8:30 last night. SERIOUSLY. I told my husband we were such losers for being in bed at 8:30, but I was getting a migraine and I just couldn't take anymore. My husband, he's just lazy.

Today is like the first day I've seen the sun shine in like a week or more. Its been raining, raining, RAAAAIIINING!

So I'm going to go shower, get the kids ready and we're going to the beach. Yup, it will be freezing. But the sun is shining and I want to take some pictures and let my son run around. It will be good and I will be happy for a break from potty training (i.e. little boy wieners).

Hope you have an enjoyable day too!

Good Thing That Baby Is Cute

2011-01-14T11:40:00.000-08:00

My 8 month old is sick. He's had a very low grade fever that dies down during the daytime and comes back at night. You know, when we're SUPPOSED to be sleeping. And because it comes with a runny nose that makes breathing difficult, no one is getting much sleep.

Well, let me take that back. The other kids are sleeping just fine. For the most part, the husband is sleeping just fine. Its the baby and ME. Emphasis on ME thats not sleeping well. Of course I feel sorry for the baby, but he get to take naps all day while I walk around like a zombie. And really I have to be inside my own head and I really feel sorry for myself when I have to deal with myself on little to no sleep. Did that make sense? I TOLD YOU I HAVEN'T BEEN SLEEPING MUCH!

I get cranky when I'm tired.

I decided this morning that I shouldn't be allowed to mother before noon-ish. I'm just not a morning person and it really isn't fair to the children to have to be around me before then. I wouldn't mind sleeping in either.

If you guys are here visiting this week from Regarding Annie, thanks for stopping by, hope you stay for awhile!

For my great friends who already know me, I won a little contest Annie was having and she linked to my blog all this week. Thats what the line above is about. Don't be jealous, I love you the most.

Thanks for the links Annie, google analytics says I went from a mere 30 visits (on a good day) to over 100! Wowsers.

Sage Advice

2011-01-13T10:18:00.000-08:00

Just a tip for you husbands out there:

If you are in the car with your wife, and somehow get into an argument where your wife asks you a question; the longer you wait to answer it, the more mad she will get. Or if she makes a really good point and you just sit there for 20 minutes without a word, she will be sitting there working out more and more points to her advantage. So be smart men. Answer right away, say you're sorry right away, think of something RIGHT AWAY, because the more time your wife has to sit and think about things, the madder she will be.

And you're welcome.

~Melinda

YouTube, I Love You

2011-01-12T13:01:00.000-08:00

Oh wow people. I need to catch my breath because I have been laughing so hard I very nearly barfed. For real. I wouldn't be a good friend or lover of comedy if I did not share these videos with you!

I was over visiting Jillybean's blog where she had posted this video her kid's teacher had shared with them, click over there to see the first video.

And this is the second video:

And the third video:

I am not kidding you when I say I was laughing so hard there was some retching and disturbing noises coming from me. I hope you enjoy as much as I did!

Things I Notice in the Bathroom

2011-01-11T15:49:00.000-08:00

*Why does my shower curtain say "dry clean only"? I mean come on, its a SHOWER CURTAIN, wouldn't they think its going to get wet? Dummies.

*My body wash has little "moisture bead" things, and I can not use it without popping the beads first, its like miniature bubble wrap or something.

*It needs to be cleaned.

*How does my husband get toothpaste so high up on the mirror, is he spitting up toward the ceiling to see if he can still make it in the sink?

*I would never want to write a note to my husband in lipstick on the mirror because: A--it would ruin my lipstick and B--I would have to clean it off and you know that has to suck.

*I think I'm experiencing hearing loss because my blow dryer is so loud.

*It is an evil place because my scale lives there.

Thats all I've got for today. Do you have as deep of thoughts as I do, in YOUR bathroom?

Boy oh Boy

2011-01-10T10:55:00.000-08:00

I have four children. My first two were girls, my second two: BOYS.

Boys. Boys, boys, boys, boys...boys. Boys are a whole other creature I tell you!

From the very beginning they smell worse than girls. I'm serious! Boys like to play in the garbage can. They like to run in circles for half an hour straight. They're rough and loud and curious and have so much energy I wish I could channel it to use some myself. Reverse psychology doesn't work on them at all. If I told my girls to go take a bath and they whine about it, all I would have to say is "Fine. Then you CAN'T take a bath!" and they would be begging me to take a bath. Boys? Not one bit. I can threaten my son, "Do you need a TIME OUT?!" (my girls would be quaking) and he would be "Yes. I DO want a time out! PLEASE GIVE ME A TIME OUT!!" (yelled in the middle of church), its exasperating.

Probably the worst thing about boys though? Their boy parts. Yes. You read that right. Their boy parts. They are like OBSESSED with them. Potty training my son has been like living in a nudist resort. And I'm gonna be honest, I just don't want to see wiener's like...ever. Even if they are just my little boy's. I feel like I'm being visually assaulted all the time. I'm thinking boys' think its like their own personally handle of some sort, just something to hang on to constantly. Goodness sakes Son, its not a toy!

My younger son is eight months old now and I see him doing the exact same things as my older son. He's walking now and he is into EVERYTHING. He just learned how to open all the cupboards in the kitchen, and do you think he wants to play in the cupboard with pots and pans? NO, he wants the cupboard with dangerous chemicals that should probably be up high anyway! What is wrong with him?!

But you know what? Boys are so awesome too. And I love mine more than anything. Ya know what I just thought of--boys are like puppies! So cute and adorable and lovable and so destructive...

Why I Hate Growing My Hair Out But Do it Anyway

2011-01-07T20:56:00.000-08:00

For two years I had super short hair. Like boy short. And I LOVED it. It was funky, it was EASY and it made me feel put together every day. No pony tails means your hair gets fixed everyday (and it only takes five minutes!). You save tons of money on shampoo and your shower time is cut waaaay down.

The bad parts of short hair:

*You don't realize how cold your neck gets--really!

*You have to keep cutting it CONSTANTLY.

*Sometimes you walk by a mirror and think you're a man.

*You wonder if you look like a lesbian.

*The grow out stage is HORRIBLE.

(Me with short hair last Christmas, I was pregnant hence the double chin)

So why do I not have super short hair anymore? I'm not really sure actually. The main reason honestly? I don't want to have the same haircut for years upon years upon years. My mom has had three haircuts her whole life. I can't do that. So its time for change.

Now that my hair is semi chin length I'm starting to get to the part where its fun to actually "style" my hair again. Things I couldn't do with super short hair. Like curling it. Or pulling it up. Or whatever. Bad parts of longer hair:

*It gets in my face all the time!! Its so annoying. Especially when I'm in bed and trying to sleep and my hair is like all up my nose, that didn't happen with short hair.

*My hair is everywhere again. When I wash my hair I swear I'm pulling it out by the fist fulls.

*It takes FOREVER to fix now. Blow drying used to take 2 minutes, now I'm in there for 10 before I even get to straighten it.

*Ugly grow out stage is well...ugly.

*My baby has hair to pull now.

(Me with my medium hair this Christmas. I was confused, hence the weird expression)

I really just wanted a change but man, growing your hair out SUCKS big time. So why do I do it? I think mostly because I'm stubborn.

Tune in later this week for how I want to cut my hair for the "in between" stage right now. I know you can't wait!! (I just love keeping you on the edge of your seat!) Please share your thoughts on hair growing out-ness, I would love to hear you hair growing stories!

2010 Is Way Back Then

2011-01-04T10:22:00.000-08:00

Well, its time again to take a look back before moving forward! That is, I'm taking a quick look at 2010 and telling you some of my favorite things (quick for you, this post took me FOREVER.)! If you'd like to check out past years you can see here and here.

Favorite Song:

Animal- Neon Trees

honorable mention:

If We Ever Meet Again- Timbaland ft. Katy Perry
I've Got A Brand New Pair of Roller Skates- Melanie Safka

Favorite Movie:

Harry Potter 7 (I haven't actually seen this yet, but I KNOW I will LOOOVE it!)

honorable mention:

Inception
Knight and Day
Despicable Me

Favorite TV Show:

Any of the Real Housewives

Favorite Book:

The Hunger Games (notice I did NOT say Mockingjay, I started reading this series earlier this year and just LOVED it, but the last book was pretty disappointing for me.)

Favorite Vacation:
Trip to Utah!

Favorite Outfit:
ugh. I'm STILL trying to lose the baby weight and I hate ALL OF MY CLOTHES. But what I would give to have this outfit from Victorias Secret:

(except I would keep my stomach well hidden. Ya know.)

Favorite Person(s):
DREAM TEAM

Favorite Project:

painting the crib

Most Drastic Change:

Having a baby while Dave was in South Carolina for five months.

Highlights:

*Dream team (I was so lucky to find these girls this year!)

*Kimball David

*David coming home

*Utah trip

*fun summer

*Ocean Shores

*holidays

Lowlights:

*David being gone for five months

*crazy pregnant lady

*dislocated knee

*having a baby by myself :(

*scary neighbors (gun shots, lots of partying, police in the middle of the night. Yeah.)

Even with some of those things I wish I could change, it was a year that I will always remember, am hopefully stronger for and learned a lot from! We all have years that aren't what we hope they are, and some of the years are more than we could hope for. Its the hard that makes us appreciate the good and I'm grateful for our trials even though they're awful some days, because they help me become the person I want to be! Here's looking forward to 2011!

Christmas and Some Other Things

2010-12-30T11:12:00.000-08:00

First up, Christmas was very nice. We ran all over Tacoma and Seattle and I was exhausted but it was a really good day. You know, besides the ridiculous amount of presents we got; by the time we got home there were literally toys crammed into our van, falling out when the door opened. It was insane. Don't get me wrong, of course I appreciate it and of course my kids loved it, but no one needs that much crap. And I don't want to have to find a place for it all and the clean up was crazy. So I hope your Christmas was as lovely as mine. Just less crap filled.

So now that I've updated on Christmas, I can blog about what I really want to blog about. And that is: nothing. I have about four ideas I've been working up in my mind but the thing is I am SO freaking TIRED I can't properly formulate them. I would like to know when the night will come that I am not woken up by a screaming child wanting me to hold them, or nurse them or rub their back...EVERY night. I'm also not very smart, because I haven't been going to sleep until like 1am most nights. I just don't get why I'm so tired...

Also I just wanted to throw out here that I hate those blogs that you have to click a "read more" button to actually read the whole post. Do you know what I'm talking about? It is SO ANNOYING. Why yes, I did come here to actually read the posts. So why do I need to keep clicking this stupid button to open up the whole thing? Then if I missed a post, I have to read the first one, click back to read then next one, click "read more" to read THAT one--when all I should have to do is scroll down. Dumb.

Hey guess what? My 8 month old is pretty much walking! Isn't that crazy?! It is so cute to watch his little legs carry him across the floor. Gosh I love him.

Also, I'll be back in a day or two for my wrap up of my favorite things of 2010!! Are you STOKED?! You should be. You should be.

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-23T11:02:00.000-08:00

So this past week has been cuh-razy! Just lots of little things to finish up and get done, but I'm very happy to say that I'm at a good place. As in, pretty much done! I just have a few more presents to wrap, and a couple of handmade things to put finishing touches on. I feel good. :)

Plus, my house is pretty clean! I KNOW--its a Christmas miracle!! I was feeling so happy last night because I wrapped most of the presents, cleaned my house, got everyone to bed and even had a little time to mess around with some photography! It was heavenly.

Here's some of the stuff I did:

Those are Christmas lights, and I was figuring out how to change the shape of them from plain circles to whatever I wanted (like stars and hearts), get it? It actually wasn't too hard and although they're not exactly right, it was still fun to try and get some good results.

Update: I guess I should clarify, I didn't do the shapes in photoshop, I cut the shape I wanted (star and heart) out of a piece of black paper and put it over my lense, that changes the shape of the lights. Also, my cousin's hair turned out beautifully (if I do say so meself!), the lesson was good too! So all in all, I really have nothing to complain about, how weird! ;) Here's a picture of my cousin, sorry you can't really see her hair, I wasn't in the right mind set to think of taking a picture! (okay, stole some off of Facebook)

And this is what I looked like for the wedding, kind of fun to get dressed up! :)

Now on to the next couple days of fun and craziness! I hope you guys all have a great and amazing Christmas! Wishing you safe travels and no family fighting! ;)

Randomocity

2010-12-16T09:20:00.000-08:00

I'm feeling better. Not completely Christmas-y but not so dark and gloomy and scary. So thats good!

I went shopping with my mom earlier and it was so nice to talk with her and get out some of my feelings, of course she has awesome advice and even some advice I think is dumb (mostly that she thinks I should wake up earlier, silly woman!) but she's one of the best people I know, so listening to her makes sense. (Except for the getting up earlier. That makes NO SENSE AT ALL.)

I have a busy weekend ahead of me. My cousin is getting married. I'm doing her hair, helping set up the reception, taking some bridal shots, and making like 500 asparagus roll ups. Pray for me that her hair turns out gorgeous.

I bought some of the Pepperidge Farms knock off Tim Tams. Pray for me that they're amazing. I'm going to need them.

I bought this potpourri spray that is really cinnamon-y and smells so good. I sprayed it on everything I could think of. Now its a little TOO smelly in here and I have a potpourri hangover.

Maybe I'm heartless but I didn't get that much out of Toy Story 3. I mean, I thought it was cute but honestly? They ARE just toys aren't they? I mean, is there supposed to be some sort of message about taking care of your toys? "Play with your toys kids or else they'll be sad!" or "If you accidentally lose one of your toys, they'll take over a daycare and make other toys miserable!!" I thought it was a little dramatic. Sorry.

I'm teaching Relief Society on Sunday, its about the sacrament. I wish I could just play this for them. I LOOOVE John Bytheway. Seriously. (By the way--OH MAN I'M soooo FUNNY!!--I saw him give this same talk live myself!--NO REALLY THOUGH, DID YOU GET IT??!!?--)

And I will stop here for tonight. Goodnight.

Bah Humbug

2010-12-14T14:55:00.000-08:00

Honestly, after this last Christmas and the way things are going this year, I am not really loving Christmas time so much.

When I was younger, Christmas was magical. I mean seriously, it was magical. I loved it and I loved everything about it. The traditions my mom did, the smells, the weather...I loved it all. When we were in Utah, I still loved Christmas. We got to do Christmas our own way and I liked it. Sure Christmas is always stressful, there's decorating and shopping and wrapping and EVERYTHING, but I could do it how I wanted and it was still fun.

Now? It just doesn't feel like Christmas! The weather has been awful. Just rain and rain and RAAAAIIIIIINNN and gray and ugly. But not very cold, and not snowy. I miss the snow.

I feel all this pressure from certain family members who put an emphasis on the presents and Santa, and I hate it. Not just because we don't have money to buy a bunch of presents, but because we've never made a big deal about it and our kids have never cared...until now. We've never pushed the Santa thing, I mean, of course they know about Santa and watch the movies and all that, but we don't push a big "Santa's who brings all your presents!! Be good because Santa's watching!!' thing. I don't remember ever learning that Santa wasn't real, I just always knew and I never had a huge disappointing memory of finding out. I would've liked that for my kids, but its not working out. Also, I would REALLY rather focus on the real reason we celebrate Christmas and thats the birth of the Savior. Not Santa Claus.

Enough ranting. The point is, because I feel like the focus is in the wrong place, I get all huffy and sad and upset and bah humbug-y and I can't even feel good anymore. And whiney a little...not that you guys didn't know that about me already. The whiney thing.

I'm trying, I really am. I usually love Christmas music and movies and I haven't even felt like they've made much of a dent. Plus why is time going SO FAST?! Its like December just started yesterday, and now its already the freaking 14th!? I have tons of presents to finish up and things to figure out still. So, how are you doing on Christmas this year?

Food for Thought

2010-12-08T15:52:00.000-08:00

Every year my family and I write what we like to call "Memory Letters." We pick a new theme each year and write a memory about it, for example we've done: cousins, best vacation, favorite Christmas, most embarrassing moment, etc. This year we picked:

Food: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

I finally wrote mine and thought I'd share it with you, mostly because I already wrote stuff today and I didn't want to come up with MORE stuff out of my brain for a blog post. Sorry, but I'm fairly lazy and I'm tired. So here it is:

Food and I have always had a rough relationship. From the very beginning, there's been problems. From the projectile vomiting that had my mom changing two or three outfits each Sunday, to long hours sitting at our kitchen table next to a plate full of food I refused to eat, we just haven't always gotten along.

On a pleasant note we'll start with the good then. The first thing that comes to mind when I think of "food" and "good" together, is when I was pregnant with Bethany. It was before we even found out we were expecting and were at Dave's parents for dinner. Steak dinner. I had never before nor have I since ever had a steak taste SO DELICIOUS. I remember finishing my own, then moving on to the nieces and nephews plates next to me that didn't finish, then sucking the fat on the plate. It was just so good! I also could tell you about every candy, cookie, sweet thing I've ever loved but I suppose that goes without saying. Also I've always loved cheesecake. My mom used to make me one for my birthday every year…why don't you do that anymore Mom?!

The bad huh? I'm sorry Mom, but I have to say the worst thing I've ever had is Sweet and Sour Meatballs. When I was younger, I made it very clear to my mom (and most my siblings did too) that I did NOT like sweet and sour meatballs--at ALL. But I think my dad did, or maybe just my mom, because she kept making them and I kept having to gag my way through them. I remember one particular day we had them for dinner and I refused to eat them. I sat and groaned and whined for what seemed a very long time, until my mom informed me that she was going to the church for something (can't remember what now?) and if I didn't eat my meatballs I couldn't go with her. I hum-hawed until the last second. No really, the LAST second possible. As she pulled out of the driveway there I was running after her, meatballs shoved in my mouth, gagging and crying and begging her to take me too. Very dramatic, as is my style.

You really want to hear the ugly? Well, as ugly entails I've had some ugly experiences with food as well. Mostly, many episodes of eating something and the ugliness of seeing it come back up again. After barfing up many things you become a kind of expert on whats easier to throw up and whats worse. Ice cream, not so bad. Wendy's fries, surprisingly not that different as when they go down. Mexican, VERY bad. When I was pregnant with Bethany, David and I and my parents went to the temple, I had a horrible headache that was making me feel pretty nauseous. While we were in the temple, the headache was gone, but when we came out it slowly started up again. We decided to go out to eat at a little Mexican restaurant. The headache was so bad during dinner I could hardly eat anything, just a little bit of the rice and some refried beans. By the time we got out to the car, I was not doing well. I sat in our brand new car of one week and started vomiting into my skirt, it was a sort of bowl to catch every thing. I don't know how I threw up so much since I'd hardly eaten anything, but boy did that burn and somehow it tasted like soap. It was probably the worst thing I've ever thrown up, and thats saying something.

Also, I can't eat fruit. It makes my throat swell shut. So I think food hates me too. Hopefully in the future we can mend our ways and learn how to play nice. I'm trying to do my part, but man that food is stubborn! We'll see if we can ever reconcile our differences but in the mean time I'm going to eat this chocolate over here…
Love, Melinda

Whats the good, bad and ugly you've had with food?

Also I Want A Snack, Just So You Know

2010-12-02T19:49:00.001-08:00

Its that time again. The time where I talk about Facebook.

For the most part when I blog about Facebook its because something really weird has happened on Facebook because I mentioned something on my blog. For example, this and this.

But this time I'm just flat out complaining. (I know, so original for me huh.)

Why oh why oh WHHHYYYYY do some people have to make every single status update something political?! Ugh!! I don't want to hear your political garbage every five seconds!

Also NO MORE CHURCH QUOTES!

Wait a minute---this is feeling repetitive...have I blogged this before?! Why yes! Yes I have!

Guess what? ITS STILL ANNOYING PEOPLE!!

(Also, I KNOW you can hide people's posts, I just wish I didn't HAVE to do that because people don't get that NO ONE CARES.)

Okay then, here's a new one for you guys: in the last couple weeks I've seen at least three different instances of someone ripping another person apart on Facebook. Like for instance, one person was across the country at her mom's helping her after a surgery, her little brother was up late playing his drums. She couldn't sleep and it was waking up her baby. While I would be TOTALLY annoyed by this, I personally would've just gotten up and told him to shut it. She wrote it on FACEBOOK and said she hoped he read it. And I thought I had problems with confrontation. Yeesh. The other day a friend of mine was mad at her brother for not replacing the milk after he'd drank the last of it. And they had a full on back and forth war in comments. Really people? And yes, she's married. One of the other ones just ripped a lady in her ward apart for something she didn't like and the support she got was shocking. The hate, the anger, the swear words...

I think the lesson to learn here is that Facebook is a powerful thing and we need to use our powers for good, not for Facebook fighting.

I just save that stuff for here, on my blog. Because I am waaaaay more mature than THOSE people. Obviously.

ALSO: if I hear one more person say something about "so much for global warming" I'm going to explode!!

Okay, I feel better now. What do you think people do thats totally dumb? You know, besides harp on people for no real reason.

Sleeping Beauty

2010-11-30T11:45:00.000-08:00

I don't get a lot of sleep. Having a 7 month old and three other children, it just seems like I NEVER EVER EVER get a good night's sleep. I'm pretty much exhausted every day and I'm seriously looking into getting a big rubber mallet to knock myself unconscious before bed.

Last night was an especially rough night. The baby has a cold, so he's congested and not sleeping well. Then the two year old has been having a hard time the last few nights as well, about midnight he started crying and snuck into our bed. (Yeah, yeah, I don't want to hear that the reason I don't get any sleep is because my kids sleep in my bed, I am too cranky to respond nicely.) So all night long we were squished and crying and not sleeping well. My two daughters get up WAY TOO early and such was the case this morning. It was my second daughter's birthday yesterday and she got a barbie doll that I told her I would open today. TWENTY minutes before my alarm was supposed to go off, guess who's in my face whispering "MOMMY?! MOMMMMY?!" Yes, that horrible child. I peek my eye open and she asks if I could open the barbie right now? AND I AM ANNNNGRY! I told her I was SLEEPING and to GET OUT. Not two minutes later, my oldest is in the room "But mommy can't you open it?!" Its getting to the point where I'm going to start screaming I was so tired and all I could think of was that she was ROBBING me of a precious TWENTY minutes of sleep!!

We had a little talk when I got up twenty minutes later.

After my oldest got off to school, I went back to sleep. Thats right, I did.

I'm still angry just thinking about this. I think I'm going to go in their room at midnight tonight and ask them to get me a snack or something, awwww sweet justice...

P.S. I had a very busy Thanksgiving weekend, I hope yours was full of family and friends and happiness and thanksgiving!

My Brain is Too Tired to Think of a Title

2010-11-22T21:03:00.000-08:00

I'm feeling much better than I was last week. But instead of feeling depressed and hopeless, I feel anxious and overwhelmed. And mostly happy too. I've been laughing a lot more as well. Its nice.

The reason for the anxiousness and feeling overwhelmed is because did you guys realize that Thanksgiving is in three days?!?! And after that it'll be a blink of the eye and Christmas will be here! And I have about a million and fifty trillion things to get done from Thanksgiving to Christmas and it feels like it just snuck up on me and is pointing and laughing in my face now. And maybe kicked me in the ankle a couple times too.

Also, we're having a HUGE snow storm here right now. And by huge, I think we have like two inches. You see, when it snows in Washington it becomes a time to panic. To cancel school, to stay inside, to drive like a crazy person and freak out a lot, to write a million Facebook updates about it all. Its what you do. Picture people running around in circles, grabbing their faces and screaming WHY?!!? towards heaven. And cars sliding around and crashing into each other. And on the side lines, there's kids making snow angels, having snowball fights and building snowmen, laughing jollily and having the times of their lives. Also I think there's some explosions in there too.

So, tomorrow my daughter has no school and that would be fantastic if my husband didn't have to work either, but so far, he does. The best thing about a snow day, is sitting inside together all warm in blankets, drinking hot chocolate and watching movies. Or reading a book. I read three books this last week and I really want to read more but I can't get to the library because well, see the last paragraph.

I made a list today of all the things I need to get done. I feel less overwhelmed, but only a little. If I could get a car and a babysitter to watch my kids, THEN I'd be doing great. Also there's that weather thing, but what was I saying about that again?

I love the holidays...no really, I do. How about you? How do you handle the stress, the packed schedule, the crowds and the gimme gimme's your kids throw at you?

Make It Stop

2010-11-16T11:00:00.000-08:00

I am a somewhat obsessive person. Or I have an addictive personality. Its like if there's something I like its ALL or nothing. If I have a new friend that I love I want to see them ALL the time. If there's an Italian Soda I like, I drink one every day. Until I realize I can't do that anymore.

Take blogging, I look at blogs ALL the time. I may not blog as often anymore but thats because my life sucks and is boring.

So anyway, the point is that I am wrapped up inside my own head ALL the time. I am constantly thinking about and obsessing over EVERY little thing. I can't turn my brain off for the life of me (or would that be the life of me if I did?) and sometimes it gets old. Sometimes I would like to just not care about every little thing. I would love to just stop thinking for five minutes. I'm telling you my mind is thinking about something and how I feel about it like every second of the day. I worry about my kids, I think about issues I'm having, could my baby be any cuter, what that person is wearing, how I shouldn't have yelled at my kids just then (yes, just now), what groceries do I need, why is this sweater so itchy, is my daughter okay at school without me, how I need to stop wasting so much time but really why since I have NOTHING TO DO ANYWAY, why is that person so annoying, why am I so annoying?!?!

It just never ends, and if it bothers me so much, it has to bug other people right? My constant analyzing and talking and sharing how I feel. It gets old right?

But you guys, I don't know how to stop! How do you stop your brain from thinking? How do you change the way you react to things when you've been reacting that way for like ever? I really honestly try so hard to let things go, not worry what other people are doing because who cares, and just be happy; but eventually I fall back into obsessing about everything.

Do you think they medicate for this sort of thing? Don't worry, I'll just be obsessing over here while I wait for your answers. :)

Surprise In a Diaper!

2010-11-12T11:18:00.001-08:00

My baby is at the point now where he's mobile and whenever he finds something on the floor, it goes straight in his mouth. And because of this "eating everything he comes in contact with" every day is an adventure.

A treasure hunt of sorts.

Oh not for him--for ME. You see, every time I change one of his poopy diapers its a surprise of what I will find in there. For real. EVERY diaper.

Its mostly paper or stickers, thats the joy of having little girls who like to draw pictures all the time. They leave pieces of things left on the floor that the baby will find. Oh, he will find them.

It makes me crazy, I am constantly picking up and yelling at the kids to keep stuff off the floor. But inevitably someone forgets or the baby finds some secret hiding spot and there it is, evidenced in the poop.

He'll have a strong stomach right? Like you would need to read this post?

And that is my life right now. Crazy cleaning and poop diapers. Yay for me.

And Now, A Letter

2010-11-08T12:31:00.000-08:00

Dear Nephew,

I had a dream the other night that we were at Thanksgiving dinner. All the family was there, yes including you, and you decided you were going to eat off everyone's plate. I know that you are a strapping thirteen year old, and you are constantly hungry, but I have to admit when you got to my plate and started eating MY MASHED POTATOES, I yelled. And then promptly your mom yelled at me for getting after you. And I felt super bad--in my dream. Now that I'm awake and have time to assess this dream, I'm a little perturbed that I was the one who got in trouble. Also, I know that it was a dream and didn't actually happen, but I must say that somewhere in my subconscious I could see this very thing happening. So, let this letter be a warning to you: DO NOT EAT MY MASHED POTATOES. Ever. Obviously, they are important to me.

Just letting you know because I love ya!

~Aunt Melinda

Link Time

2010-11-05T11:46:00.000-07:00

I honestly feel like I have nothing to blog about.

Its not that I don't have a million things swirling around in my head, its just that a. it'll take too much effort to really put into words what I'm thinking and b. none of them are funny.

I've been reading a bunch of blogs like Single Dad Laughing and (Gay) Mormon Guy and Kandee Johnson and they're all so uplifting and trying to help people. It makes me feel like I'm reading self help books every day.

So when I sit down to blog I either want to write out some big inspiring post or I want to say I'm not going to blog because I should be spending my time with my kids and doing uplifting things.

Its confusing I know.

So although this post is a total dud, you can click on those links and hopefully find something that will lift you up instead!

What did You do This Weekend?

2010-11-01T09:49:00.000-07:00

These pictures are all backwards but we'll just have to deal! We went to a trunk or treat Saturday night and got very soggy. It was pretty wet out, but still fun. We did a Ghostbuster theme this year--me, Dave and Maddie were Ghostbusters. Bethany was a ghost. Sam was the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man and Kimball was Slimer. It was a LOT of fun!

On Friday we did a fun little party at my parents' house. I dressed up like Betty Boop that night but I couldn't take a picture of myself in the mirror very well, this is the best I've got:

I know it sucks. Taking a picture of yourself in a mirror is harder than you think!

The night was filled with fun halloween food and lots of fun games for the kids, they had a blast!

Kristie's costume was the best! She dressed up as Timmy and it was hysterical! When we first drove up we saw her through the kitchen window and were like "Is that dad? I don't think so...Is it Timmy? No, they're too short...WHO IS THAT?!" Well, it was Kristie. Every time I'd see her out of the corner of my eye, I'd have to do a double take! haha

This is her cheesy Timmy grin--spot on!

She's holding up her finger because Timmy smashed his finger a few weeks ago and its all bruised on the end, so she even made her finger looked bruised to match! Clever girl!

This is Timmy's reaction to seeing her the first time, it was awesome!

We also went to Dave's parents for dinner Sunday with lots of yummy food and treats, like caramel apples and homemade peppermint patties! It was a crazy and busy weekend but we had such a good time, made out like robbers on the candy and enjoyed having fun with our family most of all! Hope you had a very fun Halloween as well!

Dance Monkey Boy!

2010-10-26T09:14:00.000-07:00

You know those people that stand on the corner with a sign and dance around?

Yeah, me too.

Have you ever noticed that you hardly ever notice what the sign even is? And even if you WANTED to know what the dancing sign person was dancing for, they're moving around so much you can't even see the sign anyway.

Mostly I just look at the person and laugh. I especially like the ones that are really dancing and they think they look so cool. I can just see some teenager's thinking on this one:

"Hey, look at that guy dancing on the corner, yeah, the guy with the sign! Dude, I dance waaaaay better than he does! AND I'd get paid to do it! Thats like the easiest/bestest job in the WHOLE WORLD!!"

I honestly think the company is wasting their money because I personally have never gone into a place because of a dancing sign person, so it can't possibly be working.

But hey, they sure are entertaining when you're stuck at a light!

p.s. Do you have your halloween costumes ready? I don't have a single one done and haven't even started! Yikes, gotta get on it! But I do have the idea all ready, so hopefully they'll come together quick. What are you doing this year?

Dream Swap

2010-10-22T16:29:00.000-07:00

Do you all remember a few months ago me talking about my "DREAM TEAM" and doing package swaps? Well, if you don't I guess you'll have to dig through my archives because I have a raging sinus headache and this is just going to be as good as it gets. So anyways, we decided after such a busy summer and not doing package swaps that we wanted to do a sort of "mini" swap. Where the budget was smaller ($5) and it had to fit in one of those like 8x10 envelopes. Michelle had my name, and her package couldn't of come on a better day! I was having a bad day and there's nothing like cheering up like a nice gift from a great friend! Here's what I got!:

Isn't she awesome?! YES, yes she is.

This is what I pulled out of my envelope:

A sweet note, and two pairs of halloween socks! (I have worn them both already, much to my kids jealousy!)

Cute halloweeny dish towels, they are up along with my other halloween decorations!

And not pictured was a cute sticky notepad tucked sneakily in those towels.

I love these ladies! They are so amazing and make me so happy, they surely know how to make a gal feel good! Thanks to my Dream Team for being so fantastic!

(Are you satisfied Sheryl? I looooooove you!!)

Dream Weaver

2010-10-18T10:33:00.000-07:00

I posted a VERY long time ago about my husband talking in his sleep. Since we first got married, he has talked in his sleep and it is always--ALWAYS--funny! And after so many years I finally wised up and recorded it. :) If you're a Facebook friend, I posted this on there awhile ago, but I thought I should share this with you guys here, because you are TOTALLY missing out! So here it is, and please enjoy:

One More Reason I Can't Clean

2010-10-16T20:20:00.000-07:00

I just recently found this blog called Hyperbole and a Half and even though she swears every once in awhile, I think she's HYSTERICAL. Like I think I'm in love with her a little bit.

Anyway, I thought it would be a funny change up from regular 'just writing' posts, so this is my take with her style on what happened to me earlier today:

Let me set it up for you, my kids were watching tv.

This is what they looked like:

I needed to vacuum. I warned them before I did it that I was going to vacuum. I was going to be turning the vacuum on RIGHT NOW.

This is what ensued afterward from my son:

Turn the vacuum off.

Turn it back on.

Screaming, running in circles, running from one end of the room to the other whilst screaming.

So if you come to my house and my floors need vacuuming, you will know why it hasn't been done.

Adventures In Babysitting

2010-10-14T14:35:00.000-07:00

I don't know why bad things happened to me when there was a babysitter around, but when I reflect on some of my babysitting days, I can think of a few too many sad stories.

Like that one time when my brother got upset that I ate the last of the ice cream (maybe I took it from him? Small detail really) and he chased me down the hall and knocked me down and sat on me and proceeded to STRANGLE me. Yes. Thats right, he choked me. Hands around the neck, head knocking back and forth. Me going "ugh, ugh, ugh!" My sister crying in the corner. It was lovely.

One time my Grandpa babysat us and although I have a wonderful grandpa and I love him, somehow we weren't quite meshing that night. I don't remember what he yelled at me for (I'm sure I was completely misunderstood and had done NOTHING wrong) but I DO remember the crying. And making sure that the tears stayed on my cheeks as I went to bed so that my parents could see them when they got home that night and feel AWFUL that their sweet daughter had been so mistreated.

I started babysitting when I was twelve and believe you me, I made LOTS of mistakes. I'm not going to share them because I wouldn't want child protective services called, which is why I NEVER want a twelve year old to babysit my kids.

The end.

Up and Down

2010-10-12T10:52:00.000-07:00

Dudes, I want to crawl up in bed with a good book, fall asleep and not get up for a LONG time. I am SO TIRED. I already have sleep problems but I've been getting even less rest than usual. I think. What if this is normal?! What if I NEVER get any sleep for the rest of my life?! Kill me now.

Honestly, I think I'm going to clean my house, take a shower, put a movie on for my older kids and then go take a nap with the baby. Can I do it?! I hate napping but I'm so exhausted I don't think I can take much more.

Also, I have to get this off my chest. I'm sick of people. And drama. And crap. Why do I let things bother me so much?! Why do I take everything to heart?! Gosh darn it, I just want to be happy! Every day I resolve to let things go and not let things bother me and EVERY day I do that, something comes up to throw me! And I'm over it, I'm not doing it any more, I'm just going to let people do their own crap and I'm going to be happy! And tired. And just a teeny bit whiney.

Here's what happened the other night--I was at my parents' for a family birthday party, with my aunt and uncle and cousins' and their spouses and all that. One of my cousin's got married last year to a girl I sometimes don't know how to read very well. She's pregnant right now and said she wanted to have a natural birth so I lent her my hypnobirthing book. I went to talk to her about it that night, but before I could say anything, she tapped her glass next to her and told me to get her some water. Now the thing is, if ANYONE said "Hey Melinda, could you grab me a glass of water?" I would be HAPPY to do it and would think nothing of it, but the way she did it was like I should serve her because she's pregnant (and not even HUGE pregnant, I would even understand that a little more) and the attitude behind it was SO RUDE. I was pretty mad. Of course, I got her some water and of course I didn't say a dang thing because I'm stupid, but then we had to go home after that because I was...upset. (Also this isn't the first time she's had me "serve" her so it builds up. One time they showed up late to a get together and all the ice cream was put away and she told me to get it out and scoop her some. Rude.) More than anything though, I'm upset with myself for being upset! I know, I'm insane. Today, its more funny to me than it is upsetting, but I'm sad at myself for letting it bother me (and also for not saying something at the time). Bah. I'm working on it.

On a happy note, I made something I'm excited about this weekend. You know those "keep calm and carry on" signs? No? Here's an example:

Pretty cute normally right? Well, I made one for ME, that matches ME. :) Here it is:

Its huge and fun and I love it! I got the frame from the Goodwill for $10 and I painted it turquoise, then took the picture out, flipped it over and painted it. Now I need to hang it, exciting!

What did you do this weekend? And how do you get over people's stupid crap that isn't just stupid but affects you? I NEED TO KNOW!

So What If I Dance Around in My Living Room?

2010-10-06T10:11:00.000-07:00

In my living room, leading out to the backyard is a huge glass sliding door. There's a karate studio right behind our house and I'm pretty sure people can see through the huge glass sliding door into our living room. Where we spend most our day because the tv's in there. And the kitchen is right here too. Oh and most importantly, the computer.

I often wonder after I've done something really weird, if someone saw me and what they'd be thinking.

Like when a new cartoon comes on and I do a little weird jiggity jig towards my kids to the music. Really big hopping and crazy spins and moves. Are they thinking "Whats that lady with the crazy hair and still in her pajamas hopping around for?! Did she step on one of the million toys on the floor? Whats going on?!"

Or when a new cartoon comes on and the music for it starts playing and I sing really loud and crane my neck back to sing it like a pop star. Are they like "Why does that lady have a spoon in her hand and is using it like a microphone? Is she howling at the moon?"

Or like when my son is running around completely naked, are they like "We should call social services, there's obviously a problem with this lady."

There's a lot more situations I think of during the day but you get the point. If you saw your neighbor dancing around like a crazy person through their living room window, what would YOU think? We'll leave out me spanking my kids, dragging my son to the bathroom, how many hours I sit on the computer, nose picking and so on and so forth...

Locked Up

2010-10-01T14:41:00.000-07:00

Wow, its been almost a week since I last posted. Do you know whats been taking up my time? Of course you don't unless you know where I live and then this post is gonna get really awkward because you'd be seeing a whole lot of naked.

Let me explain before you exit out of here.

I'm potty training my son. So very often he ends up naked, its just easier that way. Things are going so-so. He's goes potty on the toilet if I hassle him a LOT, but he fights me all the time. Don't tell me he isn't ready, you don't know him! More than anything, he's just stubborn and doesn't like to be told what to do about anything. The reverse psychology thing works really well on him.

So anyway, I pretty much want to kill myself right now. Potty training sucks. Even if I had complete confidence with him at home (which I don't) I don't know how it would go if we went out anywhere.

So I'm a prisoner in my own house.

Not that we could go anywhere anyway because we only have ONE car right now, and the husband takes that to work. But STILL--a PRISONER!

I need more friends.

A Letter

2010-09-25T08:12:00.000-07:00

Dear Jerk,

Hi, let me introduce myself. I live in the townhomes you were standing outside of this morning. Yeah, when you were ranting REALLY LOUDLY. Yes, I could hear you. And yes, I WAS SLEEPING. I don't really care what was going on, even if your life was just turned upside down--SHUT UP. The five people you had come out and talk to you didn't talk loud enough for me to hear, but YOU, you I could hear EVERY word clear as day. Plus the loud furious knocking on the door that is two feet away from mine, YES I CAN hear that thank you. So the next time you have a "problem" at 7:30 in the morning on a flippin' Saturday and carry on for half an hour, I just might have to yell out my window for you to SHUT UP. You don't even live here, go bother your own neighbors.

I hate you for not letting me sleep in,

Angry Mother Who NEVER Gets Sleep

P.S. I have a zit on my face, and although its probably poetic justice for picking my son's baby acne yesterday, I'm TOTALLY blaming you for that too.

Stuff

2010-09-23T13:20:00.000-07:00

My poor little baby has his first "illness". He has a fever and threw up this morning. He's been sleeping a lot and isn't rolling around and trying to crawl like he usually does. Makes me so sad. Isn't baby sicks the worst?

So since I'm sitting around with him I thought I'd just share a project I recently finished. I made this blanket that I saw at Aesthetic Nest. I loved hers and was way excited when I realized I had just about everything already to make it myself! Here's how it turned out:

And I just had to add this picture:

It makes me happy. I wish I could sleep so soundly.

And thats it. See ya next time.

Awesome.

2010-09-20T10:31:00.000-07:00

I teach Relief Society once a month. Yesterday was that day. And you know what? I actually really like teaching Relief Society. Probably because we have the nicest women in the entire world and they are so sweet to me.

Proof?

A sister came up to me after the lesson and we had the following conversation:

Super Nice Sister B.: Great job on your lesson!

Me: Aww thanks!

Seriously Awesome Sister B.: You're just so cute!

Me: Oh, thanks. (cheeks getting red)

Most Awesomest Sister B. in the World: I just like lookin' at ya!

Silly giggling commences from me.

I honestly think thats the best thing anyone's ever said to me! hehehe Awesome.

Dress Design for Shabby Apple Dresses

2010-09-18T17:25:00.000-07:00

You know, I used to be fairly artistic; I used to draw and paint and all kinds of stuff! But four kids later, I don't always find the time to get creative anymore! So when I saw this contest from Shabby Apple Dresses (I LOOVE their stuff!), I decided I would give it a go! And you know what? It was really fun! And I may sound silly but I really want to wear these dresses!haha So here's what I came up with:

This dress I thought would look really pretty in a purple (I started out with red, but decided purple fit it much better!), and I would probably do it in a jersey knit material so its stretchy and drapes (thats what the lines pulling to each side are: draping sort of thing).

This next one I thought of in a silvery/gray color and I see it in a stiffer cotton so the collar ruffles stand up instead of laying down all soft and flow-y.

This one is one of my favorites, I see it in a really soft cream colored chiffon. Ruffles around the collar and the hemline, and the ribbon should be black or brown velvet.

This one I think should be a really soft chiffon-like material on top too in some sort of floral/spring print, maybe even polka dots. And the bottom should be a tan linen. I got this idea out of my love of double breasted jackets. :)

I like these kind of dresses in a floral cotton because I think they're less "in your face/lingerie" looking, I also love if the skirt had like big drapes that went into pockets. I've seen a lot of these dresses but the skirts are poofy and very short, I like the thought of a pencil skirt with it and the built in top.

This dress I didn't have the best colors for, I would like it to be more of a navy blue instead of this light/royal blue, and also the yellow toned down a bit, but probably in a nice cotton twill. I like the drop waist of it and the full skirt, I LOVE nautical themed clothes and I think this would be such a fun dress to wear! One of my daughter's dresses inspired this design. :)

Alright then, there's my designs for the Shabby Apple contest, you can tell me what you think but only if you love them! haha Its hard putting yourself out there, sheesh! :) So really don't make fun of me, I might end up crying in my closet! For reals.

The Worst Thing EVER

2010-09-17T10:46:00.000-07:00

I have a serious problem. Oh shut up and stop laughing already! I know, I know, I have MANY problems but really this one IS serious.

When I look at the computer for awhile, my eyes start getting fuzzy and I get a ridiculous headache. EVERY time I'm on the computer.

I think my body's trying to tell me enough is enough. WAAAAaaaaahhhhhhh!! Oh how I love the computer, oh how its my sanctuary, oh how it distracts me from doing what I should be doing, oh how it...makes me sick. :(

Sad day.

Don't Dye!

2010-09-14T22:06:00.000-07:00

Man! This is just not my week for sanity! I'm having little freak out sessions all the time! Here's whats going on today:

I decided I needed a change. I've been feeling a little blah because I just am having the hardest time losing this baby weight and I feel pukey. So I decided I was going to dye my hair. Not a huge change because I didn't want the upkeep, I just wanted to dye it a dark red. So I did that tonight.

Don't freak out and hope for a picture, it barely looks any different at ALL. Poo. Really honest, you can't tell unless the light hits it just right. Double poo.

So not only am I disappointed about the turn out, I'm also freaking out a little. You see, they put in the directions that you should do a skin test thing, to make sure you don't have a reaction to the hair dye. I haven't dyed my hair in about 10 years, but I've dyed it before and not actually DIED, so we're all good right? Besides I have absolutely ZERO patience to wait 48 hours before I actually do it, if I want it done I'm going to do it RIGHT NOW. And like I said, I did.

But now I feel a little sick. And like my face is swelling and like my head is crushing in on my brain. I really do! I swear I'm not exaggerating, there are serious sweat beads on my upper lip!

I really hope I don't dye--I mean DIE!

You know what else? Hair dye stinks really bad. Its making me feel sick. I mean sickER than I already do...

UPDATE: I did not die in the night, although when I was woken at 1am and rolled over to look at the clock and the numbers were all fuzzy I seriously thought "I'M GOING BLIND BECAUSE OF THE HAIR DYE!!!" Yes I need help.

Things Go BumB in the Night!

2010-09-09T21:43:00.001-07:00

Okay, I never came back and blogged the other day. BUT I'm here NOW and thats really all that matters right?! Right. Whatever don't roll your eyes at me, I can feel it.

So I've had quite a scare tonight and I'm still not sure if its over. You see, as I said in my last non-post that my four month old is trying to crawl. He's on the floor a lot and thats a problem because my next two older children feel the need to step on him and drag him around and whatnot. SO, I wanted to get him a bumbo to sit in for when he just needs to get away from those other naughty kids. (Side note: whenever I think "bumbo" I automatically think "bimbo"--its just the way my mind works.)

For those of you who don't know, this is a bumbo:

It is a magically awesome baby seat. No really, it is seriously cool. Even a little tiny baby like mine can sit up in it perfectly. Their little butts just conform to it or something.

They run from $30 to $40 bucks and I just don't think they're that awesome. So I went on craigslist and found one for $15. Score!

Fast forward to tonight.

I made my husband go pick up the bumbo because I had visions of being hit over the head and dragged into a dark alley if I went myself. Also because he had a meeting right after, so I figured he could just pick it up and go to the meeting. Easier, plus no me in a gutter anywhere. Win/Win!

So its after the pick up time and I haven't heard from him, I figure he's in his meeting but its a casual meeting so I text him to make sure he got out of the ghetto alright.

Nothing.

Send another text. Nothing.

Call. NO ANSWER.

Call again. Maybe four more times. STILL NO FREAKING ANSWER.

Send two more texts telling him if he could just text a letter or something so I know he's alive that would be good. Get nothing back.

Until at one point I FINALLY get a text back saying he's in his meeting. WHATEVER thats what the kidnappers WANT ME TO THINK!

He's home now so I know he's okay. Unless they brainwashed him and he's going to kill me in my sleep...?!

I know I have issues, a fear if you will, of dying in a horrible way. But hey, we got a bumbo out of it! So it all worked out in the end. Even if I won't be able to sleep tonight and my stomach's all in knots, its allllll good.

G'night, see ya tomorrow...I hope!

Blah

2010-09-07T13:47:00.000-07:00

I know I know, I haven't posted in FOREVER. I've been busy. My oldest went back to school, my youngest (who's only four months old) thinks he can CRAWL. My third thinks the only way to live life is to cry and scream and have you carry him all over the place. My second? She's pretty good. A little whiney, but I'd take it compared to the rest.

Also I have a TON of laundry to fold. I'm good with the washing part, its just the folding that gets me. We went camping this weekend, don't go camping with little kids. Seriously.

I feel sick.

I gotta go lay down for a little bit and then I'll be back with a REAL post. Promise.

The One You've Been Waiting For!

2010-08-31T22:21:00.000-07:00

Okay here it is! The post about our Redneck Party! So for a family birthday party we decided we wanted to do some sort of theme, we were throwing things around and all of a sudden it hit us: REDNECK! Now I hope nobody gets offended, it was all in fun and whats sad is that it kept coming back to us that a lot of things weren't really a reach for us... :)

First up, just a few of the decorations:

Getting dressed up, I loved the costumes! Most all of us got a tattoo of some sort, only classy ones you know. Me and Dave were gettin' hitched that day, so he wore his fancy tuxedo tshirt, and don't worry about me, I'm not due for another month, just showing big... There were a lot of pregnant people there, my mom, my cousin's wife--because as she says "It ain't redneck unless you're pregnant!" hahaha

We played games too, games like toilet seat toss, watermelon seed spittin', bobbin' for pickled pigs feet and spam carving! And there were AWESOME prizes--all straight from the Goodwill!

Ahhhhhh how I love being silly! Next time you're getting together for a big family BBQ or party or something, I would highly recommend the "Redneck" theme. :)

Three Way What?

2010-08-30T12:42:00.000-07:00

The other night I was cutting a mullet on my brother in law for the redneck party we were getting ready for (I will post on that later. Promise. I know you're dying to know.) and the following conversation happened.

Brother in law talking to my grandpa:

Grandpa: blah, blah blah...we used a three way radio.

Brother in law gets excited: Really?! I've never done a three way. I've only done a two way, and even then my brother had to tell me how to do it.

Me: sniggering under my breath...Well, thats what brothers are for eh?

HAHAHA! It still makes me laugh....ahhhhh *wipes away tear*

Hodge Podge of Complaintiness

2010-08-19T14:40:00.001-07:00

Getting back to normal life. Thats what I've been up to.

Trying to survive the heat here also. You see, it doesn't usually get too very hot here in Western Washington, and when it does, its very humid. Which is very uncomfortable. And very sweaty. And VERY stinky.

Hardly anyone here has air conditioning because thats just silly to have for four days in the whole summer. But man, for those four days are you miserable! And I hate to complain because I LOVE hot weather. Really my biggest complaint is that I live in the middle section of our townhome and so I get heat from both sides, and it is HOT. And uncomfortable.

Other things to complain about:

*I hate cheap diapers. HATE THEM. For a baby shower I received lots and lots of diapers and wipes. Somewhere in there I got a pack of cheapy diapers, which leak on me constantly. CONSTANTLY. Its so flippin annoying. (They leak after an hour of me putting them on--THE BABY--it really sounds like I'M wearing the diapers in that paragraph...hmmmm.)

*Never send your husband to the grocery store unless you want to have him come home with this:

And ONLY this. Macaroni & Cheese and tuna.

*I have a massive canker sore. Its ridiculous and it hurts like crazy. I keep thinking it can't get any bigger or more uncomfortable but then I wake up the next day with a freaking volcano on my inner lip.

*My two year old son ate a little too much fruit and had an explosion in his diaper. This happened upstairs. I was downstairs. He decided to slide down the stairs to tell me to change his diaper. You can only imagine the clean up on those stairs. Kill me.

*We watched '2012' with John Cusack last night. It was... horrible. Depressing. Scary. Sad. A little ridiculous. Made me hate the government. I might have even peed a little, I mean cried a little.

*I'm reading "The Alchemist" right now. Its boring me. Its a little too...I don't know...dumb. I don't like when the author has to throw in so many little dumb things, it seems like the story should be interesting enough without telling me pop culture facts or something? I don't know. I really want to get some new books (MOSTLY JUST THE LAST HUNGER GAMES BOOK!!! COME OUT ALREADY!! Sorry for that little outburst. Ahem.), but our library sucks so bad, they never have anything in stock. Poo.

*Is it sad I could come up with like five more complaints? Don't answer that. I already know the answer.

Okay, I'm done. Thanks for letting me unload. Please feel free to leave your own complaints in the comment section. (Unless their about me and my whining, or anything mean--about me, you know.)

Travel Log

2010-08-12T13:44:00.000-07:00

Utah Trip

Day 1- Saturday Aug. 7th:
Had an early flight, the lines were insane. Made it to boarding with two minutes to spare. Sat by a very nice couple, maybe in their fifties. The woman offered to give me a ride, babysit for me, and I could borrow her swimsuit if I mailed it back. Sad I didn't tell her I needed a kidney or money, pretty positive she would have given me her social security number if I'd asked.
Saturday night stayed up late visiting with friends.

Day 2- Sunday Aug. 8th:

Went to our old Utah ward. It was awesome and weird at the same time. Didn't want everyone to think I was staring at them, even if I was. Was so happy to know that I still knew the majority of people, that not everything had changed. Had a great night playing games with old friends, even if I lost. Badly.

Day 3- Monday Aug. 9th:

Was supposed to meet some friends at Chick-fil-A but one of them wasn't feeling so hot, so went to Parker's Drive In instead, and then to a park. Met Sheryl in real life for the first time. Her kids are absolutely adorable. And monkeys. Got Smart Cookies, they're still as sinful as ever. Mmmmmm. Also visited with my awesome friends Shanna and Laina. I miss them. :( Had family night with my aunt and uncle and cousins. We roasted marshmallows and starbursts and rode on scooters. Sweet!

Day 4- Tues. Aug. 10th:

Pretty positive I did something this day. But it completely escapes me. Tuesday night we head out to the Bee's game (AAA baseball team in Utah), it was awesome. Had a ton of fun watching them kick New Orleans butt and visiting with the family.

Day 5-Wed. Aug. 11th:

Met up with Michelle and Sheryl together this time, at Sheryl's house. Sheryl's house is gorgeous. And right in the middle of horrible road work. Wait to meet them for 40 MINUTES! Super annoyed. Want to punch someone in the face. Sheryl and Michelle are amazing. Michelle brings Chick-fil-A! Awesome. Michelle's brother Rick is hysterical and I want to carry him around in my pocket for forever. He throws a nugget at my car window when I drive by, I physically flinch away like a dork. We laugh like crazy. Go to Zupa's for dinner--yum. Head over to Shanna's for a sleepover with her and Laina.

Day 6- Thurs. Aug. 12th:

Have the most amazing conversations all night long, laughing and crying and laughing some more. Don't go to sleep until 4am. Shanna makes you breakfast, pancakes and bacon. Its her anniversary and still she's treating you. Hang out until the afternoon, have some time to kill so go to DownEast, and get disappointed that their prices suck. Go see your Katie friend and are shocked at how big her kids have gotten! Have to go to bed at 8:45 because you have a migraine from staying up so late the night before.

Day 7- Fri. Aug. 13th:

Head to classic skate in Sandy with all the cousins and their kids, watch them play for hours, laugh and talk and realize how lucky you are and how much you miss your kids too. Eat dinner out with the girl cousins, and head back to Angie's for games and glitter toes. Stay up late laughing your head off. Eat a Smart Cookie. :) Friday the 13th my butt. It was awesome.

Day 8- Sat. Aug. 14th:

Get up and start packing, clean things up and play wii with uncle Jim. Say goodbye to everyone and cry. Feel sad you didn't see more people, but miss your family and are ready to be a better mom and wife and happier person.

All in all, I would say this trip was absolutely perfect. I really needed to step back, take a breather and realize how lucky I am. Now I'm home and I'm ready to do what I need to do. It really was amazing and I feel so blessed to have such wonderful people in my life!

Agh! Time to Pack!

2010-08-05T12:01:00.000-07:00

I'm leaving this Saturday for a week in Utah. Yes, its true! I might blog, I might not, we'll just see how this trip goes.

I like to keep you guys on your toes.

So now that this trip is right here and I'm needing to actually pack and get ready...I'm REALLY nervous!!

I'm nervous for a couple of reasons:

First up, I'm nervous that my other three children will die before I get home. Not that I don't trust my husband, I just don't trust my husband. My two year old son is NAUGHTY and I'm seriously afraid that if my husband isn't constantly vigilant the kid is going to be halfway down the street before my husband knows it and been hit by a car. Or he's going to break his arm or something. I don't know, I'm just worried.

Second up, I'm nervous that no one in Utah will want to see me. Like I'm going to show up at my old Ward and be like "HELLO!!!" and everyone's going to be all "what are you doing here?" I really am scared about it, especially because I've had a couple people when I told them I was going to Utah say "Oh, whatcha going for?" and I'm like "uhhh, to visit." It seems dumb now.

Third up, what if the world ends while I'm gone? Hey, it could happen.

I also feel stupid calling people and asking them if they want to spend time with me. It feels so self-centered, or conceited or something. "Hey friend, I'm going to be in town next week, what days work for you to hang out with ME ME MEEEE!!!"

You don't have to tell me I'm crazy, I already know it.

Muffin Tops and Cupcakes

2010-08-02T15:41:00.000-07:00

I don't know whats going on with my body lately. But it hasn't been pretty. No really, its not pretty. AT ALL.

I mean I know I had a baby a couple months ago, but I am hanging on to twenty extra pounds.

I know some people would like to punch me in the face right now. But I'm 5'2" and 20 lbs. makes a big difference with how my clothes fit and how I look.

The big problem is that I've been working out like crazy and NOTHING. In fact I swear I gain another freaking pound every day! I think the scale is laughing its head off every time I step on and I start cursing when the stupid numbers pop up.

I don't even care about the numbers really, I just want to put my clothes on and not see something like this:

Yes thats all I'm asking for. Is that too much?!

I'm so upset and worked up just writing this, I think I'm going to have to have a cupcake now...

Things I'm Obsessed With Right NOW

2010-07-28T21:42:00.000-07:00

*chocolate milk

*Marilyn Monroe

(someday I want to re-create this picture. with me. really.)

*Man v. Food

*Ree Drummond the Pioneer Woman

*CUPCAKES

*sifting through craft blogs for ideas, but never actually crafting

*This hair cut:

*Bethenny Frankel

*how to get people to give me money

(or in other words, I obsess over how to pay my bills)

I Blame You Cheeseboy

2010-07-26T09:33:00.000-07:00

With Cheeseboy talking about McDonald's urine tubes so much it was bound to happen!

This last Saturday we went to the local McDonalds for an ice cream cone and to let the kids play in the play place.

I should have known it was a doomed trip because as soon as I walked in the door, a 10 year old girl ran out like a crazy person right into me.

After we got our order and went into the play arena, it didn't get any better. There were three "older" kids (as in TOO freaking OLD to be playing in there, one of which was the original 10 year old who clubbed me) acting like wild animals. They started off SCREAMING at the top of their lungs until we told them to knock it off. Then they started climbing all over the outside of the netting. There was no adult and I was fed up. So I got up to go tattle on them. Right then their parent walked in and told them it was time to go. Lucky thing because I was about to be peeved and all indignant and crap.

For about five minutes my kids got to play in peace.

Then some other kids came in, those kids weren't loud or noisy or bad, it just so happened that one of them PEED IN THE TUBE.

Know how I know that?

Because my daughter slipped and FELL in it! Ewwww. :(

Yes thats right, she had someone else's pee soaked all over her pant leg. So disgusting. (A little bit of an understatement there.)

So all in all, Cheeseboy this is your fault. I hope you understand that you will be paying for my daughter's therapy when she's old enough to understand how messed up that is.

WoMAN in the Mirror

2010-07-20T11:34:00.000-07:00

I hate summertime blogging. Hate it.

This same thing happened last summer too; everyone else goes off and actually has stuff to do and they're busy and having fun and don't blog, while I sit here like a big blogging loser.

I miss reading everyone's blogs. Not that people aren't blogging at all, just the frequency goes down a lot. Mine has too, but thats just because I'm boring and have nothing to say.

Anyway, I've been thinking a lot about "who I am."

You know when you first are getting to know someone and you get to the part where you're telling them about your family, and its like 'my sister is the crazy one, and my brother is the responsible one, blah, blah, blah' (I wasn't saying those were true for my brother and sister either way, just an example). Well, I want to know what people say about me. I WANT TO KNOW! Even if its bad, I want to know what they think. And then I can either change and be better and even more ridiculously perfect...heh heh...or I can defend myself and tell everyone they suck. I don't know, I just want to know! Ya know?!

Why is it so hard to see ourself? You can get a pretty good feel of who a person is after you've known them for awhile (sometimes right away if they're easy to read), but what is it about ourself thats so hard to get? Is it that we don't want to admit to our faults? Do we not see the things that we don't want to change? I don't know, but I'm trying really hard to see it, and all I'm getting is a headache.

So, do you want to know what people say about you behind your back or are you happy being blissfully ignorant?

p.s. Michael Jackson's "Man in the Mirror" is one of my all-time favorite songs. For real. :)

Cute, and then Not so Cute

2010-07-15T10:45:00.000-07:00

Things kids do that are "cute," that are very much not "cute" when adults do them:

*pass gas. It is totally cute when a little baby "toots", not at ALL when an adult does. Hysterical when little kids do it, nope still not funny when my husband does.

*yawn. I love a sweet little baby yawn, its adorable. When an adult yawns all huge, wide mouth open, uh-uh: not cute.

*walk unsteadily. You know when a baby's first learning to walk and they look like Frankenstein? Their arms out and they're wobbly and bow legged and shuffling. SO CUTE. If I walked around like that people would be rushing away in the other direction.

*stare at you grinning. I look down at my baby constantly to catch him staring at me with a big ol' grin on his face, its the sweetest thing. Like he was just waiting for me to look at him and he couldn't help smiling. Now, if I looked across a room at a man staring at me with a big ol' grin on his face, I'd probably slap him.

*steal your food. I was at a baby shower last night, and there was a little 18 mo. old girl there who was so stinkin' cute! She was walking around the room and would stop at people's plates and smile and reach over for a chip or whatever looked good. It was hilarious and so cute. Now if I walked around the room and started grabbing food off other people's plate I'd probably get stabbed with a fork.

*suck their thumb. SO cute to watch a little baby find their fingers and suck them. I hope I don't ever see an adult sucking their thumb, for reals.

*eating. Have you noticed when a toddler eats, he smears food all over his face? Its so funny and cute to watch them try and get a spoon in their mouth and get the food all over their nose and chin and hair and ears. Now picture an adult, wide mouthed trying to maneuver a spoon and getting it all over their face (picture it! I mean really picture them eating like a toddler! DO IT!). So. Not. Cute.

*being honest. When a kid tells you your teeth are yellow, or you have a big belly, its cute because you know they're just being honest. If an adult told me I was fat, I'd probably punch them in their big fat gut.

I compare adults and kids all the time, the biggest thing that just stymies me is: crying. From babies to little kids, when they cry they wail. They make noises and sounds and say "WAAH!", why don't we do that as an adult when we cry? At what point in your life do you stop wailing? And why do we stop if thats obviously the natural way to cry since a baby does?

These deep thoughts so weigh on me...

Heated Dreams

2010-07-08T13:54:00.000-07:00

I was having the craziest dreams last night! CRAZY!

The most weird/vivid dream I had last night was that my baby's arm fell off. Yeah. It fell off. Minimal blood, it was just like detached. So we took the arm and we stuck it in a diaper (one we took off him, it was used yes), because that was going to preserve it until we could get it reattached. Then we got ready to take him to the hospital, when someone said maybe we should call an ambulance because they would be faster. So we did. And this all took place in a random, very small apartment. The paramedics came and we were all crammed in this apartment. And then it ended. Seriously. It was a weird dream.

Do you ever have dreams that while you're dreaming, you're thinking "this is a weird dream"? I was doing that last night.

Then the next dream I was eating lobster.

Then the next dream I was talking to Ree, the Pioneer Woman. (I love her a little bit.) And we were like best friends and she had a cage with all these sweet little puppies and we were talking about dogs and she thought I was the cutest little thing, so she picked me up and we ran around in a circle for a minute while she asked me what she should name her chihuahua. It was magical. Or maybe just weird, come to think of it.

I have weird dreams.

I think its this heat, its getting to me.

We need a fan.

Badly.

Do you guys have weird dreams? And do they stick with you all day? Because mine sure do. Do you have a fan I could borrow?