Wednesday, February 28, 2007

A Miracle.....the scale moved! :)

I am so excited I can't even put it into words. The scale is down 2.5 pounds since Monday. I am so excited because I have been working so hard trying to lose and have not seen results since Christmas time. I made up a new plan for me....of course still counting points (WW) but am really putting it to the test. I have made up a menu for myself each morning for the entire day before I start eating. This way I know that I can just look at my menu and see what's next. I can fit in a "skinny cow", peanut butter/choc. flavor at night and still be ok. I think what has made the biggest difference is that I have been drinking tons of water. My new plan since Monday has been to drink an 8oz. glass of water every hour from 9:00-5:00 and then one at 7:00, 9:00 and 10:00pm. Boy, I have never spent so much time in the bathroom during the day in my entire life. It's pretty cleansing :) I feel good. I have incorporated more protein which I know helps. I am never feeling hungry during the day. A great salad is...endamame (soy beans), lettuce, carrots, gr. onions, 2 oz. of chicken and orange poppy seed dressing. I guess you could throw in some mandarin oranges too. It is tasty!! For fellow WW's the orange poppy seed dressing is only 2 points for 2 Tbsp....100 calories and 5 grams of fat. Not bad at all. I love when I can find a 1 point per Tbsp. kind of dressing that tastes good. I hope the scale doesn't trick me anytime soon because I think I would be crushed. I am really trying hard and am so happy that it's working!! I feel so pumped up it may be a good cleaning day....I feel lots of energy right now! It's time to go set my timer to clean. I love doing this...setting my timer for 30-40 minute intervals to clean up around the house. I just see what all I can do in that amount of time. The kids were helping the other day and commented how fast we did everything. It was nice.

The sun is shining today so hopefully it will warm up my toes.

Tuesday, February 27, 2007

Best Foot Forward Tuesday :)


Here is my left foot....resting! I was pregnant with my last baby girl...Ellie Jayne. This pic was taken in June,2006...one month before I had Ellie. I put it up because these are the most recent pics that I have of my foot not as swollen as the next picture. My camera is not working or I would take one right now. :)

Here are my feet just a few hours after I gave birth to my sweet Ellie Jayne (7 1/2 months ago)..a little swollen I would say. My mom was just about to give my feet a good rub when I took this picture. Mom's do such a good job of rubbing feet, scratching backs, etc. At least that is how it is in my family. We aren't shy about giving a neck rub or a back scratch. I wish Todd was a little better at it. :)

This is pretty funny to have my feet on here. I try to put my best foot forward everyday. It doesn't always happen but I am always in motion....always trying. With four little ones my feet take a beating. I am always on my feet during the day. Usually well into the night. My feet carry me around to do so many things for myself, my family and for others. I am grateful for them and for how well they have treated me thus far. In the past 5 weeks, these feet have carried me 60 miles as I have jogged religiously trying to get in better shape.

As a child/young teenager I did not like my feet. My toes are long like fingers and they just didn't look cute in sandals. I got over that real fast and am ok with my feet. I love what age can do. It helps you get over the silly things that you can't change.

I am not a fan of pedicures. Call me wierd. It costs too much for just a minute of feeling good. I would rather spend the money somewhere else.

I hope that I can continue putting my best foot forward or trying to do a little better each day.

Take Lelly's challenge and post your "best foot forward".

Sunday, February 25, 2007

The Weekend

Well, the weekend was full of activities....I don't feel like I got much of a weekend. Friday night was the Scout Blue and Gold dinner. It was at a members house. Mitch and Casey really enjoyed being with all of the older boys. We enjoyed chatting with other members of the ward...well, I did. Todd was probably ready before I was to get home and sit down & relax. Saturday morning I was up early to workout....no nothing has changed on the scale. I'm about ready to chuck the darn thing. Amie, I'm waiting to hear what your success was at WW. We had a little b'day party to go. Jeremy turned 3 and Emily was so excited to go and give him the present she picked out for him. It was pretty cute. They had a Mickey Mouse theme going....served Mickey Mouse waffles and the kids got to top it with tons of yummy toppings. The kids decorated Mickey Mouse sugar cookies and then played in the yard. It was fun. Todd came with me so we all chatted with the other adults there.

Since we didn't get out standard Friday night Taco Loco in we had to grab it for lunch on Saturday just before Todd had to leave for a priesthood leadership meeting at 3:30. This weekend was our Stake Conference. He went to that and I cleaned up the house while Ellie slept. It was perfect. We swapped and I went to the Adult meeting and he put the kids to bed. Not a bad trade off. :) It was a really good meeting about being prepared. They went over all aspects of being prepared....food storage, financial, spiritual and physical preparedness. They had different tables set up afterward that we could pick up fliers and info on all kinds of different ways to store food, water, etc. Have any of you heard about the food in a bucket that is sold at Costco? I'm sure those of you in Utah have since I believe they started doing it there first. Not sure though. It is 3 months of food in a 5 gallon bucket for $109. I was loving the idea just in case we needed to grab the food and go. It would already be in something that I could carry. I have food storage but not all ready to take with me if I had to up and leave right away. I keep our 72 hour kits in our cars. I thought it was a good idea.

This morning our general meeting for Stake Conference was at 10 so we were out the door early for a Sunday but home so much earlier than usual. It was nice having the entire day to hang out and be with everyone. That is Todd was home with us...no meetings today. The best part was having him sit with us during the meeting. That hasn't happened for 6 months.
Todd had promised the kids that we would do pancakes and sausage for dinner since we didn't have time to do all of that this morning. I busted it out for them when we got home for lunch. They loved it. Todd got busy making his new version of salsa...roasted tomato salsa. It is his best! I loved it. It's a knock out.

Tonight was spaghetti, salad, and asparagus. Very tasty and the boys seem to really like asparagus. I was surprised. Casey likes a bunch of veggies...Mitty is way more picky. Now the kids are in bed...all 4 of them. What a moment! I can actually hear the sound of the computer. I better finish picking up so the place isn't too bad to face in the morning. I hate to wake up to a disaster Monday morning...or any morning. The Apprentice is coming on and so I better get situated.

Something funny Casey said to me tonight. I went to rub his head while he was laying in bed and he said, "I really don't like that feel." I said, "What does it feel like?" He said,"It feels too much like a skinny hand." I thought well, at least my own child is noticing my efforts unlike the crappy scale. :) He said he likes dad's hand better because it feels plain. Whatever that means. I left it at that. Mitch on the other hand was happy to have more time with me rubbing his head.

I wish everyone a great week!! Including myself :).

Thursday, February 22, 2007

100th Post...busy Thursday

Wow, this is my 100th post. I am so glad that I was converted to blogging....thanks Amie. I have loved every minute of writing my own posts as well as reading others and getting to know other people. This blogging world is a tight knit community. I have had a lot of fun and look forward to much more.

I have to be quick...Todd is waiting to watch Idol. Today was busy and fun. I made cookies for Mitty's Beatlemania this morning and then did some stuff with Arbonne. I got the kids ready, took Casey to school, picked up a bit and then got the crew packed up again to go up to watch the racers come into SLO. We made it with time to spare and set up our spot and waited anxiously for the guys to ride in. It was a serious event. I love it....the adrenaline I feel for these guys as they come racing by is just awesome. The kids love it!! We watched them come in and then walked around to all of the different tent/booths that were set up. Everyone is giving stuff away. We got cool water bottles, lip balm on key chains...just fun stuff. After that we had to book it back home, put some food into the kids before we had to go off to Mitty's performance at 6:30. We enjoyed it so much. The kids all had their tie-dyed shirts on singing to the Beatles. Very cute. Mitty did a great job and knew all of the words. My camera wasn't working so I don't have any still shots. I'm in need of a new camera. Anyway, we left the program once it was over...each child with a cookie in hand and called it a night. Just as we were getting into the car it started to rain again. AHHHH, we made it just in time. It poured this morning. I love to hear the rain on the roof. Once we got home it was bath time, clean up room time and hit the sack time. I wish I was hitting the sack. I am on my way to watch Idol and fold some more clothes.

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Catch Up....again :)

I'm noticing a theme with myself....I'm catching up more than I am staying current. First off while I'm thinking about the recipes that I talked about...Melinda, the chocolate waffles are from Emeril. They truly were the best ones I've had....the strawberries and whipped cream help too.

Well, the past couple of days have been busy. I really start to fall behind in house work if I sit down and blog during the day. I know, my problem. I have tried to really get things done around the house. I guess I got an organizing bug in me and really went to town yesterday. It took all day and I'm still not done. I was just wanting to make sure that everything behind a door or in a drawer was cleaned out. I started in the kids rooms. I went through all of the toys and got rid of a bunch of stuff the kids don't play with anymore. I moved beds around, went through the kids books and organized those, got rid of a bunch of shoes they can't wear anymore, and trashed toys that aren't played with or are broken. I hate little broken pieces of anything...crayons especially. Casey and Emily got into it and were helping me. Casey was so excited to see what his room was going to look like while he was at school. I finished it up and the boys loved it. They do a really good job of keeping their toys organized into a few different boxes I have set up. One for figures, one for cars, one for animal figures, one for legos, and one for trains. In a different storage spot, playdoh and toys for that are all in one box, crayons,pencils, and markers in another. I have so much trash after doing all of that. I went through their box of school work that they like to put things in and got rid of a bunch. I have to keep some things...mostly artwork and some of their best writing papers of each grade. It just felt nice to dig through and clean out. Next, I have to hit the clothes. I did the same in Emily's room. It felt so good to get all of that done. It did take all day to do that. Ellie was a good sport. While she was awake she was in the room where I was working playing with toys. She really is so good!! As long as she has food in her....she is content to play with her toys. I feel blessed to have a little one who is pretty easy. I better knock on wood. :)

Today was pretty outside. The weather stayed nice but started to look cloudy late this afternoon...darn. I am ready for Spring/Summer. I love to see a beautiful blue sky with the sun shining into the house. I could not live in Washington...sorry Donna. I went to Target and just loved being there. I haven't been to Target since Christmas. I know that is pretty bad. Wal-Mart is so close eventhough I really can't stand that place. It is nothing like Target. I feel so happy in Target. Does anyone else share my same feelings?? I loved it so much that I stayed for almost 2 hours. Ellie never made a peep in her seat, Emily was occupied with an icee and I just loved looking at so many things. I left there with 2 totally cute skirts and 2 shirts to go with. They are my favorite style of skirt. I should take a picture. I'm too tired right now but I will. When I tried them on, Emily looked at me and said, "Mom, you are so cute."....PURCHASED!! That made me happy...now just keep some warm weather for more than 2 days.

I have stuck to my points and after getting on the scale tonight I can't wait to see it in the morning. Tonight it said what it has said in the morning ....so I know it will just have to be down tomorrow. I may just have to post about it....that is how excited I would be if it moved. I have stayed the same for toooooo long. Thanks for the pep talk Barbie. I have really tried to make more of an effort to drink more water. I have never had such a problem as I do right now getting enough water down in a day. I feel like sometimes I am so busy doing other things I don't pay any attention to my thirst level. Oh well, I've done much better the past couple of days. Yeah for me!!

Tomorrow I have to make cookies for Mitty's performance at school. It is called Beatlemania. They have tie dyed shirts to wear for this and have learned all of these Beatles songs. It's pretty cute. Only up here, right??? When I started singing one of the songs Mitch said, "Mom, how do you know all of these songs?" That is pretty funny. That is tomorrow night and we're all excited to go. I finally have a video camera so that I can record his performance....I'm so excited!!

The cyclists in the Tour de California come into San Luis Obispo tomorrow around 3:30 so I'm picking up the kids from school and hustling up there so that we can watch them ride into town. The company Todd works for is a sponsor so they make a big deal out of it...they are having a big catered lunch with a tricylce competition. Yes, Todd is taking our kids tricycle to work. He digs this stuff. After those festivities they all go down to the line where the cyclists cross to cheer them on. It's pretty neat to see them ride in. Last year they rode through the village here in Arroyo Grande. We took the kids down and watched on the sidewalk while they all rode through. It's pretty intense to see it that close. The problem with me posting every 4 days is that the post is too long.

Is everyone watching American Idol?? I'm in heaven with 5 hours of Idol this week. I'm tired and better hit the sack.

Sunday, February 18, 2007

Discovered a new recipe....you have to try it!!

If you know Todd and I you will know that on the weekends the tv is pretty much on foodtv and nothing else. Us and the kids love to watch all of the shows. We have tried many recipes and enjoy learning new tips and tricks for in the kitchen. Todd loves to cook. Anyway, we watched Tylers Ultimate yesterday and he was making Chicken Enchiladas. It was looking so good that I had to go out and get the stuff to make it last night. Ahhhhh, it was a knock out if you like chicken enchiladas.

The recipe is a lot of typing so I'm just going to direct you to look up foodtv.com and go to Tylers Ultimate show and look up his show on Sat. 2/17..chicken enchiladas. It might look like a lot of work but it really isn't. I had to pass on the results of a fab dinner.

Today was nice..yesterday was better because it was 85 degrees. It was gorgeous. I loved wearing a skirt and flip flops. I looooooovvvvvvvvvvveeeeeeeeeee California. I told Todd tonight that I don't think I could live where you can't wear flip flops all year long. Today I woke up to fog and cool temperatures....58 degrees this afternoon. It even rained this evening on our way home from church...ugh! Our bishop went out of town last minute and so Todd got to be with us at home today for a change. There were no meetings before church. The kids were loving it. I couldn't believe it. We were all ready to go at about 1:00. We don't have to be at church until 2:30. It was nice to just chill before we had to go. I think the extra hands made a big difference. Thanks Todd.

Todd has the day off tomorrow as well. It has been a nice 4 day weekend for him and the kids. I'm hoping to be outdoors again tomorrow. Let's hope the rain continues to go south.

I can almost get giddy about how happy I am when Todd has a day off. I love to spend time with him and he lets us know how much he loves to be with us. I enjoy all of our family time together. We are making memories for our children!! Wow, the pressure I feel in just writing that out. I just pray that I am doing all that I can to teach my children what matters the most. Hopefully they are learning that ;).

**** I can always make tomorrow a new beginning of something great. I love Mondays because they give me that feeling*** Mainly a new start to stick to my points (WW). I can't shed these last pounds. It is very frustrating!!

Happy Birthday Marilyn

My sister Marilyn turns 35 today. I can't believe how time flies. We were all so young living under the same roof not that long ago it seems. :) Here are some things about Marilyn...

She is forgiving
She is considerate of others
She is kind.
She will do anything to help you
She puts others first.....too many times in my opinion :)
She loves her family
She is accepting of others
You can tell her anything...at least I can.
She is honest and will tell you just how she feels :) Not a bad thing
She loves babies.
She is able to love other peoples babies and children like her own. That is something special.
She makes me feel like a special guest at her house. I know that she does others as well.
She is a good house cleaner
She is a hard worker
She loves Cheesecake Factory Jambalaya dish
She is great with animals
Animals love her
She has beautiful blue eyes
She has great skin....clear and nice color
She can let her hair dry wet and it looks good....darn I wish I had that. :)
She is fun to be with
Kids love to be with her...mine and I've seen many others just love her.
She is extremely generous and wants you to have everything that will make you comfortable and happy.
She is an excellent nurse.
Everyone loves her...young and old!! She is easy to love. :)

She has so many wonderful qualities that I admire. I am so glad that we are close. I am so thankful for such a wonderful sister. I enjoyed being able to live 4 miles from her for 6 years. We had fun. I loved knowing that she was so close. Our kids played and really became close. We had each other to babysit on a moments notice. I miss being able to hang out with her for the afternoon. We would talk every morning....I knew that when the phone rang at around 9am it was her. I loved it. We had some good times!! Now that I am in tears. I am really missing all of my family. I have such wonderful brothers and sisters. I have been so blessed with a loving family. Good job Mom and Dad. I will give you tons of credit. Now that I am the parent.....I see how much of that comes from the kind of parent you are. Does that make sense?

I hope you had a great day. Your card is in the mail tomorrow. I missed the post office on Saturday. Love you and miss you lots!!
Mom, does she read these blogs?? I don't think so...I will email her the post.

Friday, February 16, 2007

Catch up on the last few days

First off, April your comment on the last post was so funny. I loved it.


Here is a picture of the treats I made for Mitch's class. I only had to bring juice drinks for Casey's. Emily was in heaven at both parties. She enjoyed treats at Casey's party and then we went to Mitch's party they offered her all of the treats all over again. talk about a sugar high. Oh well, it's one day. I love Valentine's Day. I love how it makes me feel so full of love for my family, husband and others. Not that I don't feel that any other day but it's fun to have a heart day. So the parties were fun....camera was acting up and so I couldn't take any pics of the kids at their parties. Darn!!


Valentine's day started by me making the kids pb & j heart sandwiches. As you can see it was such a nutritious lunch...pb & J and 3 kisses. Oh well, I was having fun. The kids loved it.


Todd brought home roses for me and a pretty bracelet. He brought a cute plant home for the kids to take care of. They were really excited about it. I made the kids a pasta dish and served it on Valentine plates. We always wait for the kids to go to bed to then eat our meal....we got Italian this year. I think we have done this for about 5 years now. When we lived in Rancho it was Tutto Fresco every Valentine's day. I loved that tradition. We would bring it home once the kids were in bed asleep and enjoy a nice dinner together. After we ate I busted out the treats I got....Rocky Mountain apples. Emily picked out the kids apple...caramel apple in white choc. with mini M & M's. They didn't have Todd's favorite...the Butterfinger caramel apple. I got an Avalanche instead..tiger butter, marshmallows, mini choc. chips, rice krispies and caramel. Oh it is so good. We enjoyed that. It was a nice evening.

Today was absolutely gorgeous. It made me excited for Spring/Summer. The temp read 80 degrees in the car today. Ahhhh it felt so good outside. We had all of the windows open in the house and could feel the breeze blow through. My favorite. The boys have been so excited that Todd has today and Monday off that Casey was up and ready to make sausage with Todd this morning..(their favorite with dad). Todd decided to try out Emeril's recipe for Chocolate waffles....ahhhhh, the best!! We've tried a few but this one was the best by far. It may have something to do with the kind of choc. you use also. Anyway, I thawed some frozen strawberries and whipped up some real whipped cream and it was a complete Knock Out. I wasn't going to try but of course caved. Sooooo good. I can't wait to make some for guests who come. We picked up around the house, washed some clothes and then by about 2:00 I was ready to go work out and the kids were ready to get out also. Todd and the kids dropped me off at the gym, then took clothes to the cleaners, ran by Office Max then picked me back up . They decided on Subway and that is what we got on our way to the park. The weather was just gorgeous to be at the park. The air felt so good!! I wish I could have captured it in a bottle to open on another day. The kids played and kept saying how they had such a fun day together. I love to hear that. The whole time we were sitting on a blanket eating I just kept thinking how happy I was to be a mom of these kids that were right in front of me. We all were enjoying each other and loving to be outside at the park. The view of the ocean was gorgeous and made me so happy to live here.

***A first for Ellie....she drank some apple juice out of a straw. I wasn't sure how old babies are when they drink out of a straw. Todd said, Oh, I think about 9 months. I thought heck, let's just try. She did it. She loved it!!

This is Ellie sitting in her seat. I just love her cute wittle face!! She is my sweet hearty!! She is now 7 months old and doing so many new things.....sitting up, talking more, playing more, grabbing everything, and still sucking her thumb :). I love having her and am really enjoying every minute with my last baby.

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

I've Been Tagged....why was this so hard?!

Here it goes..I've been thinking about this for days. I've asked Todd and he couldn't think of anything either. I guess I'm not too strange.

Here are 6 unusual things about me........

1. I have to take a shower before I go to the beach or pool. That is strange to most people that know that about me. What I love is Todd is the same way :).

2. I don't care to go to the movie theater. I would much rather wait and watch it at home. I can't deal not being able to say anything for that long. I never liked to go to the movies while Todd and I were dating either.

3. I love to sweat hard when I'm working out. It is such a good feeling :). But I hate to be sweating because the temperature outside is too hot.

4. I can sleep anywhere and fall asleep in a matter of seconds.

5. I always bake the desserts that I take anywhere....never store bought. I love to bake and any excuse to do so I will use.

6. I don't enjoy sleeping in.

Now...6 things I love............

1. My family...and then my family all safe in bed asleep for the night. Such a peaceful feeling. :)

2. Cookie dough

3. My kids all fresh out of the shower/bath.

4. Working out....I really do love it!

5. Todd and I sitting on the couch watching all of our shows....American Idol, House, Law in Order SVU, Apprentice, I Shouldn't Be Alive. Good times :)

6. A clean house with the Vanilla Cone scent plug in plugged in ...hahaha

Why were the things that I love much easier to come up with than the other? It literally took me 30 seconds to think of things that I love.

Consider yourself tagged if you are reading this...Barbie, Mom, April.....I think everyone else has done it. I'm so behind.

Quote from Elder Bednar.....& todays happenings :)

"I have reflected repeatedly upon the phrase 'the tender mercies
of the Lord.' Through personal study, observation, pondering, and
prayer, I believe I have come to better understand that the Lord's
tender mercies are the very personal and individualized blessings,
strength, protection, assurances, guidance, loving-kindnesses,
consolation, support, and spiritual gifts which we receive from and because
of and through the Lord Jesus Christ. Truly, the Lord suits 'his
mercies according to the conditions of the children of men' (D&C
46:15)."
Topics: Love of God, prayer, mercy

(David A. Bednar, "The Tender Mercies of the Lord," Ensign, May 2005, 99)


I got this in my email yesterday or this morning. Oh how I love what he says!

Today, I let Mitty sleep in a little longer. He didn't get up until 8:05...wow! They were in bed last night by 8:10. 11 hours of sleep is pretty darn good. I'm glad he will sleep in a little more now. Not always but when he does it helps for a good day.

I came home from taking Mitty to school and made the Hershey Kiss cookies for his Valentine party tomorrow. I just need to bag them and twist tie them and we will be good to go. I love getting that stuff out of the way early. Even better is that I only have to bring drinks for Casey's class party. It will be crazy when I add Emily to Kindergarten and we will be making all kinds of things for each class. Oh well, I love this part of being a mom. I'm blessed to be able to stay home and do all of these fun things. Kids remember all of this stuff :)

Ellie is asleep so I should probably take advantage and go straighten up the house. It is so amazing how quickly things can get done when babies are sleeping :). I hope you all have a wonderful day wherever you may be.

Sunday, February 11, 2007

Weekend Recap/Good Mail/Remember These Days....



Well, so much has been happening and yet no time to sit down and post about it all. To start off here is some good mail I received from Amie. How thoughtful of her....I loved everything in the package. The note cards are adorable (love the blue and brown), the nail polish I used this morning and love, the candies were gone almost instantly, love the hand foam, and the pencils are cute. The kids were putting dibs on the pencils and then I said, "Oh, this package is for me." They were stunned. Usually the packages are for them. I did share the chocolates and M&M's with them. They loved it. Those truffles are dangerous. :) Thanks again Amie. That was fun to get so many goodies in the mail.







Do these pictures look like a familiar scene from way back?? After school on Friday we sat down and busted out the valentine cards and candies for Casey and Mitch to take to school today. Of course Emily had her Little Mermaid cards and was writing her name on the cards for her cousins, friends, grandparents, etc. She had fun. The boys did such a good job of writing out the names and putting the stickers on that I didn't even need to help. Although I did. I think I had as much fun as they did. It brought back fun memories of me doing the very same thing many years ago for my own class. I loved the Valentine parties and passing out the cards. So fun to be a kid again. The valentine cards now don't seem to come with envelopes and so I had to put the candies in a separate bag and staple it to the card. Not bad just very time consuming. I think it took us about an hour and a half or almost 2 hours to do this project. Casey loved eating the hearts of course and so did Mitty. I guess we all had our fair share of candy hearts. Once Sunday came I was so glad that we did this project on Friday. Sunday's are not real easy days...lots of work and no time to do much else.

Friday was our typical "Loco" night. We got Taco Loco and enjoyed every bite. The chips and salsa are addicting. I'm convinced they put something in there that keeps me going back for more. I eat way too many. Oh well, the scale didn't show it thank goodness!! I start over fresh every Monday morning. I love Mondays for that very reason. :)

Saturday I was able to get up and go workout early and do my 3 mile run. I feel so good after I sweat like that. It sounds nasty but I love when I can sweat to the point of dripping. Maybe it's because I feel like I am melting my fat off. Not a bad thing. Once I got back it was time to dig in and get some things done around the house. I did mass laundry and folded which always feels good, cleaned the bathrooms, kitchen, did dishes, washed my bedding and Ellie's bedding and vacuumed the house. Todd had a leadership meeting that he went to from 10:30 until about 2:30 when he got back. When he got back the other counselor in the bishopric came in with his wife and so were chatting and they asked if we were going to the adult valentine's party that night. Woops, I forgot all about it. I didn't have a babysitter lined up or anything. After the counselor said, "do I have permission to find one for you"...he was on a mission. He literally called like 15 minutes after leaving to say he found someone. That was easy for me!! I loved it. It was our bishops oldest daughter. She is 20 and nannies for her job. Perfect. The kids like her and so do I. I can't believe how excited our kids were to hear that a babysitter was coming. Mitch kept asking for about 2 hours when she was coming. WOW! The kids must be tired of us. :) She got here at 7:45...the party didn't start until 8pm. I had Ellie in bed for the night and the kids fed and in jammies. The kids were going crazy when she got here. You know all of the showing off that has to go on.?! Mitty just eats that up. Thank goodness she is used to that and has lots of fun with them. We were off and they were playing a game. The party was really fun . I did say to Todd, this is the first time that we have had a babysitter since we moved up here (1 yr.) and we are going to a ward party??? What is the matter with us? We had a good laugh about that. The party did turn out to be fun. It was at a members home so that is always more fun than in the gym at church. there was lots of good food, chocolate fountain, cheese fondue, and tons of desserts. Dancing followed.....there are some really talented dancers in our ward. Mainly the older couples. I'm not a dancer so I enjoyed watching our friends get out there and have some fun. Toward the end of the evening and after much harrassing for not getting out there...an older lady in the ward pulled Todd out onto the dance floor.(Not to dance with her) Todd came out of his shell and busted out a whole sequence of moves to the Beach Boys (if you can imagine...Todd doing the twist, lifting up his knee and then going down to the floor and popping back up. I can't even do this justice. The crowd was clapping and roaring with laughter. They were all so happy that they got him out there. I know some of you (my family) can just see him hamming it up and giving them what they want to see for a minute. We enjoyed good company and fun for a few hours. It was so nice to talk with friends without having all of the kids right there to watch. The kids were good for the girl which was so nice to hear. She said to us, there was only one problem....(you can only imagine what was running through my mind). She said, "Casey threw up.' Oh heavens, I said, why didn't you call us. She said, becasuse he isn't sick..he doesn't have a fever. She said ,"I think he just ate too many goldfish." She was right. He wasn't sick and was fine in the morning. I felt bad that she had to clean it up but did a good job of it. The kids loved her which was good.

Saturday evening the primary pres called to see if I could teach the sunbeam class on Sunday. Of course I accepted and wondered just what I had gotten myself into again. It is really too hard with me having Ellie. I need 2 hands (actually 4 hands) to keep the group under control. There are a few that are really good and so well behaved which makes it so nice. Thank goodness I had put a roast on Sunday morning for dinner so I didn't have to worry about making anything once we got home. That is the best!! The kids enjoyed their dinner and then hot chocolate with chocolate marshmallows before they were in bed. Kids were asleep by 8:40. Not bad. The boys went right to sleep without any antics. That is so nice. My deal with them is whoever goes to sleep first gets to pick their favorite breakfast the next morning. They love this. Whatever works!! This post is so dang long....I have yet to do my "6 unusual things about me" Donna tagged me and I'm still thinking about what to say. It's hard to come up with stuff. I guess I'm just boring or something. The weekend was nice and now I'm off to start a new week....a short week..yeah! Todd and the kids have Friday and next Monday off!! YEAH!

Thursday, February 08, 2007

Beautiful Baby Contest




Here is a photo of Miss Sweet Ellie Jayne. This is the picture that I submitted for the baby contest on Regis and Kelly. Marilyn called me and told me to do it. I don't watch Regis and Kelly but thought this was a fun thing to do.

The week has gone so fast.....

This week has really gotten away from me. I have been busy doing many things. Today was cloudy and cool. Not bad though. I just hate when the cloudy weather makes it so dark in my house. I love to see the sun shining in through the windows. That is happiness for me.

To start off...I shook the taco sauce bottle this afternoon and the lid just popped right off sending hot sauce all over the carpet. Someone didn't screw it on tightly. Of course it hit every where except the tile floor.

On to this week...the other day Mitch told me that his tooth chipped in the back. I forgot about calling the dentist until yesterday and so he said to bring him in today so that he could take a look at it. I had to get the boys out 20 minutes early to make it to his appt. I am rushing ...of course to get there and by the time I get us all into chairs with a book of some sort Casey has to get a drink, then Emily has to go to the bathroom. Finish that and the dentist then comes out to tell me he Mitch's filling has come out and he needs it replaced. Mitch had fillings done at 2 1/2 and 3 yrs. old. He has weak enammel and it was causing his teeth to crumble. Poor guy. He is an excellent patient though and not afraid of the dentist at all. Well, we were done and then off to another errand thanks to Todd for reminding me. My head doesn't think straight when I have all of the kids with me. I can lose track of what I really went somewhere to do if they are all with me...which is what I did. My next errand was to get the truck smogged for the regestration renewal. Oh boy, that was such a long time waiting. The kids did fairly well. I was really surprised. We waited for an hour and a half total before the car was ready to drive away in. We first had to wait in a line of cars (all of us inside the car) for about 40 minutes. Of course, Casey has to go to the bathroom...you know he was just in the nice clean bathroom at the dentist but didn't go...Ahhhh it kills me. So we had to use the nasty car shop bathroom. I don't freak as much with the boys because they don't have to touch the seat or anything. We get back into the car and then about 10 minutes later Emily has to go. Of course I was lining the toilet seat over and over with toilet paper. That's the killer with little girls and nasty bathrooms. We survived and then finally were able to go wait in the tiny waiting area. It was awful. The first thing Mitch said was "Mom, this place has been here for hundreds of years." It had that "old" feeling to it. It's funny how a kid thinks of it. So we were there from about 3:45-5:15. Emily kept telling me that her tummy was hurting because we had to be at that place for soooo long. Too funny. Now Todd was able to join us for our last and final errand of the day....Costco. I love our Costco. There is never a huge crowd of people. It is so nice to walk through there without being mad at a hundred carts surrounding you. Stocked up on a few necessities...formula, roasts, milk, and Zone bars for Todd. We grabbed pizza and hot dogs for the kids and Todd. I sat drooling at all of the kids slices of pizza. I am trying to be sooooo good. I was waiting to eat at home so that I could count the points. On a side note, Marilyn inspired me today by calling this morning to tell me she lost 2.4 pounds this last week. That does it. I'm not going to be left behind. I had to kick myself into gear again. The points were charted and I had 23.5 points today. The kids ate and Ellie was then ready for her dinner so we booked it home. She gets so excited when we say it is time to "eat". She starts swinging her arms and she squeals for meal time. Once I start feeding her she literally will growl after every bite. She is so happy to be eating. She is so fun. I just love having Miss Ellie Jayne. She is such a happy baby and so content.

And I was able to get my visiting teaching done yesterday with one of the ladies. I love when I complete that. It is such a weight off of my shoulders....does anyone else feel that way?? I don't feel like it is a burden but am so happy when it is done.

I can't believe it is already 10:00....ahhhhhh! I've been on way too long. I need to fold clothes and put some dishes away. I am feeling a bit exhausted right now. I need to shutdown and go to sleep.

Tuesday, February 06, 2007

A great quote from Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley

"Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that he's been robbed. The fact is that most putts don't drop, most beef is tough, most children grow up to be just people, most successful marriages require a high degree of mutual tolerance, most jobs are more often dull than otherwise. Life is like an old time rail journey...delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders, and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas, and thrilling bursts of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride."
~Gordon B. Hinckley

This is the first time I have read this quote....and I love it!! I hope you all enjoy it as well. Happy Tuesday. I'm hoping my day will be better than yesterday....it just has to. I may have to document how bad it was in detail so that I will appreciate the days even more when the kids are good for me.

Monday, February 05, 2007

I Have Been a Recipient of GOOD MAIL!!



A much needed fun package came in the mail today. Thank you so much Melinda!! I love Valentine stuff. The bowl is cute and I love peanut M&M's. I was so happy to get yummy treats. I had just come home from an awful experience at the DMV with Ellie and Emily. Emily was so bad for me I thought I was going to die in there. Ellie somehow cut her finger on I have no idea what and the blood was smearing all over the form that I was filling out. It was bad!! And I had to wait such a long time.

Question: Is there a master list of addresses that I can get to send out "good mail" to others? Anyone let me know. I would love to reciprocate.

Time is up...Ellie is pushing all of the keys over and over.

Temple Thoughts

Yesterday was Ward Conference in our ward and it was excellent. Our Stake Pres. spoke to us during the third hour...combined RS and Priesthood. The big push this year is the Temple. Our stake has been invited to have a day at the temple in commemoration of the LA Temple (50th Anniversary) this year on Dec. 1st. We will meet together in the solemn assembly room. What a special experience that will be...one that I would not miss for anything. He spoke about temples and what are the obstacles that keep us from going. As I sat there and thought..well, a young family and it's 2 1/2 hours away each way. Then realizing how far some travel in the world to go to a temple. I felt a bit stupid to myself. We are really spoiled and don't realize it sometimes. As some of the temple workers in our ward were asked to bear their testimony, I could feel the spirit so strongly and realized that it is possible for me to take a day every month and go. The one man in our ward said how many people he sees come to the temple who are crippled, laid out on hospital gurneys(sp), who are in such need of help but that they come to do a very important work. I thought to myself alright that does it. I thought to myself if I am too busy to not go to the temple then I am too busy with the wrong things. I have decided to take one day a month and drive down early in the morning and do a session and be back by noon. I really want to do this and know that my family will be blessed because of my time spent there. Todd and I won't be able to do it together but maybe we can rotate every other month. I know Temple work is so important and that there are many close by waiting for their work to be done. I want to be a part of that special day for them. I am excited for my new goal to go more often. I am not going to come up with any excuses why I can't do this either.

April, Barbie, Marilyn, Mom/Dad....it would be fun to meet and go together like every third Saturday morning. With baseball starting for the kids it may have to be an afternoon trip. I'm going and will let you guys know and then maybe you can meet me there. I would just love to have a standing appt. where we all meet there once a month. What a great experience that would be to do it together. I want you all to know that I have a strong testimony of the temple and its blessings. Ok, here comes the tears. I can't ever not cry when talking about the temple. I love it and have a strong desire to be there often.

Sunday, February 04, 2007

BYU WOMEN'S CONFERENCE.....Is anyone going????

I'm getting excited for this years Women's Conference up at BYU. My mom and April have now gone 5 years in a row. Barbie joined the group I think 4 years ago, this will be my 3rd year going and Marilyn joined us last year for the first time. We had a blast. We stayed in a hotel all together one time and then last year was my first time joining them in the dorms. We had a good time so that is now what we do. You can't beat $69.00 for 3 nights. :) I signed up and got my plane ticket a couple of weeks ago and so now I'm just counting down until our annual mom/sister trip to Women's Conference.

We have made some fun memories up at Women's Conference that get talked about all year long. It is so awesome to go and hear all of the wonderful talks all piled into 2 days. To be with so many other women around the world all joining together for the same cause is just an amazing experience. I leave the conference with such an uplifiting feeling and a new start to do better. It really pumps me up and helps me to be the best wife and mother I can be for my family. Thanks to April's blog...I know that it is 2 months and 4 weeks away. She has it on a ticker. Are any of you planning on going this year or have gone in the past? It is the best!! Every penny that is spent on it is so worth it!

Amie, my mom just mentioned to me that you and your mom are planning to go. We all have to get together and do something. I think this year it is just the 4 of us...mom, April, Barbie and myself.

I'm off to get myself and kids ready for church. Ellie is sleeping so I have to take advantage of the time and get ready. I'm anxious to hear if anyone is going. You can see that I love this trip:)!