Kittys and Spiders and Pirates and Lions and Witches and Gross Guys, Oh, My!

Whew, typing that title made me realize how big my little family is getting. Oh, my, indeed.

Happy Halloween, Everyone! It's going to be a while before we recover from the crazy sugar high around here.

We enjoyed a night of trick or treating in our best ever neighborhood and visiting Grandma Barbara at Pioneer Valley. They always spoil the kiddos there.

Chloe was a kitty this year. She's already declared her intentions of being Sleeping Beauty next year because she has golden hair. Knowing Chloe, she won't forget that and I'll be sewing a stinking Sleeping Beauty costume. Ugh. Maybe I should start now...
Lily was the Itsy Bitsy Spider. The girl is perpetual motion defined and I had a tough time getting a good picture of her costume. The back has a big red spot (a la Black Widow), but I forgot to photograph that. We gave her a little hat with eyes all over it just to be accurate.

Brigham was a stinkin' cute pirate. He has been practicing his "Arrr" for weeks now and did not disappoint.
Here are the three little munchkins together. Again, tough to get a good shot of all of them...
And here's Cannon who should have been dressed as an angel because that's what kind of a baby he is. Instead, he went as a lion and didn't roar once.
Stanton put his costume together 10 minutes before we had to leave. I think he turned out pretty sick. Really. Sick. And wrong. But the man I love nonetheless.
Finally, this is what you get when you ask your 3 & 4 year olds to snap a picture of you. It took several attempts to even get these...

Too bad, too, because you can't see the seriously awesome huge purple and white eyelashes I was wearing. They were so cool and were a great conversation piece all day. I don't know why I was such a stick in the mud about Halloween for all these years -- dressing up makes the day so fun and I'm already planning my costume for next year...

Early Voting

Utah is one of those blessed states with early voting. I took advantage of it today (tomorrow is the final day) -- Judy (my MIL) was kind enough to tend for me. The line was totally doable and I was done within 15 minutes of arriving. Much better than Tuesday will be, I'm sure. I cast my vote, got my sticker, and headed out to my car. On the way out, I ran into a couple Stanton & I knew when we lived in Providence. I said hello and we small talked for a second. Then the husband saw my sticker and gave me a big hug, "Oh, I'm so glad you voted because we KNOW you voted the RIGHT WAY!!" I said, "What do you mean?" He said, "Well, your husband makes over $XXX a year, so I know YOU voted the right way." I smiled and said, "Well, I think I did."

I didn't tell them who I voted for and I'm not telling you who I voted for, but I am going to rant a little here about this conversation.

First. Why do you think it's okay to yell out, "Your husband makes over $XXX a year!"? I mean, how could YOU possibly even know if that's true or not? Would you appreciate if I brashly speculated about YOUR income?

Second. Why would my income level affect how I vote? There are other concerns besides my own tax rate this election. And I'm entitled to weigh what's most important to me and vote accordingly. So are you. Please don't assume I'm voting for the same reason you are.

Third, and most important. "Oh, I'm so glad you voted because we KNOW you voted the RIGHT WAY!!" So, if I voted the "wrong" way, would you be disappointed that I came to cast my ballot? Are you only happy that people vote if they agree with you?

I think this election, more than any other, is an opportunity for us to really weigh issues rather than parties. There are very important decisions to be made and while a president doesn't have the power to make all of those decisions (thank Heaven), he can have a positive influence in those issues. He also has an opportunity to represent us as a nation to the rest of the world. These are important things to consider (at least for me they are) when deciding whom to choose in a presidential election.

I respect those who have spent time researching, listening, and pondering their choices for president, even if they don't end up voting the same way as me. It's one of our great privileges as Americans to disagree and cast our vote according to our own conscience. I'll vote my way, you vote yours.

Here's my favorite political video of the season.



And remember to vote! But be a grown-up if someone disagrees with you, okay?

I'll now go back to my regularly scheduled posts about kids and life around our house. I promise.

You Do Know She Can Take Your Pictures, Too, Right?

I mean seriously, I'm giddy over these photos. Emily did it again.

Handmade Christmas -- Ideas Part 1

I'm working on my handmade Christmas for the kiddos. I've been looking for hand puppets to go with the theater I'm planning to make for them. There's this amazing seller on etsy.com that I am in love with. Check out the incredible sets she sells.
Noah's Ark
Fairy Tale
Little Red Riding Hood
Animals
Gingerbread Man
People in Your Neighborhood
Nativity
As you can see, the sets are a bit pricey. I'm hoping to recreate them on my own, although I'm sure I won't be up to those high standards. I might buy a set just to see them in real life and get a feel for how she does the stitchery.

And just for fun, a few very cool hand puppets I found along my search.
Optimus Prime
Chewbacca
Darth Maul

Which set would you buy?

In Which I Wear My Prudy Prudemeyer Hat

I loved The Office tonight. Great episode. Lots of quoteworthy lines throughout.

BUT....I am very disappointed that Jim was driving drunk. And that there were no apparent consequences for that behavior. I'm just sayin'....

That is all.

Marie-Therese Gown GIVEAWAY !!!!!!!

Marie-Therese Gown GIVEAWAY !!!!!!!

Seriously, I would love to win this gown. Can't you just see Chloe in it?

If You Give A Mom a Head Cold

If you give a mom a head cold,
She’s probably going to want to wear her jammies all day
Her kids probably will, too
She’ll give them cold cereal for breakfast,
And Ramen noodles for lunch
They’ll want chips and salsa, too,
So she’ll get a few bowls of that out
The chips will make the kids thirsty,
So they’ll ask for drinks
Lots of them
She’ll get several glasses of milk, chocolate milk, and apple juice
And keep putting the dirty dishes in the dishwasher
All that work will make her tired,
So she’ll turn on a movie for the older kids
And put the 2 year old down for a nap (even though she knows it’s WAY too late)
And spend the afternoon in between asleep and awake.
Dinner won’t even be on her mind until she realizes Dad will be home soon
So she’ll call Dad and he’ll bring pizza
When he gets home, Mom will ask him to take over
Even though she hasn’t been doing anything in the first place
She’ll feed the baby even though she doesn’t want to
He’ll feed the kids and get them ready for bed
Then he’ll realize that the two year old is still asleep
The two year old will wake up around bedtime and want to eat
Dad will feed him chocolate milk and snuggle with him while watching tv
Mom will lay in bed some more, thinking of all the things she should do
Or remind Dad to do
But she won’t actually do any of those things
She’ll get up around 8:30 to put the 2 year old back to bed
Then she’ll fall back asleep
In the morning, she’ll notice the plates still on the counter from the night before
She’ll still be grateful for Dad, even though he didn’t finish all her jobs
After all, she forgot to remind him
The kids will wake up and want breakfast
She’ll open the dishwasher and discover it’s full of yesterday’s dirty dishes
She’ll open the cupboard and discover she used every plastic bowl in the house yesterday
She’ll pour cereal into glass bowls
And give the “break resistant” one to the 2 year old
The baby will wake up and want to eat, too
Mom will want some peace and quiet, so she’ll feed him in his room
She’ll ignore the yelling and laughing and pounding going on in the kitchen
Even though she knows she shouldn’t
Ignoring the noise will work for a while,
Until she hears a bowl shatter
She’ll curse the makers of “break resistant” glassware
Then go into the kitchen
Where she’ll find the 2 year old standing on the counter
And the girls sitting in their chairs
Waiting for Mom’s reaction
Mom will want to get mad
It won't be far from happening
Then she’ll look at the 2 year old with his face covered in cereal crumbs
She’ll start to giggle and so will everyone else
She’ll get out the camera and take pictures
Then she’ll sweep up all the glass
Bending over to sweep it up will make her head hurt
That will remind her of her head cold
And she'll probably want to wear her jammies all day…

Kids Lately II

Lily

Me: Lily, you don't have any panties on.
Lily: I don't?!
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At Cannon's baby blessing - Grandma J is sitting next to Lily at the table...
Lily: Grandma, I don't want you to sit by me.
Grandma J: Well fine! (moves a chair away)
Lily: Grandma, I just passed gas.
She must have meant "Grandma, you don't want to sit by me..."
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At Family Home Evening last night. Stanton is telling the story of Christ feeding the 5000 with the fishes and loaves of bread....
Lily: Yeah, and I had fish and tuna fish and broccoli!
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After vigorously trying to get her turtleneck over her head:
"Whoa, what day is it?"
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Stanton to Cannon: A-Goo...
Cannon: A-Goo
Lily to Stanton: Dad, you taught Cannon to A-Goo!

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Cannon

Cannon is totally smiling now! It's so cute to see him recognize our smiles and react. So so cute.

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Brigham

Brigham went poop and potty in the toilet on Saturday. I'm not ready to go all out, though.
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Chrystal: Brigham, why are you so cute?
Brigham: Cuz ma mom.
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Brigham: Choay, not a-boh-bee-it (Chloe, not appropriate)!
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Brigham: Choay Dabid Ayyen (you can guess what Brigham's middle name is...)
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Brigham as we pass any truck on the road: Coo tuck, Mom. Mom, coo tuck.

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Chloe

Chloe is trying to make a vibrato when she sings. Darling.
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After dinner tonight:
Mom, that dinner hit all my spots.

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Stanton

Stanton after eating an awesome dinner at Indian Oven: Go India!

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Me

I've come down with some sort of really nasty cold. Ugh. The kids and I stayed in pajamas all day, Stanton brought pizza home, and I lazed all day. My head hurts, my ears hurt, I'm stuffy, and my body aches. I may be missing for a while whilst my head recovers from this mess.

Apple Cider Day 2008

Making apple cider is a team effort, it requires many hands, big and small. Our day in pictures:

Start with trees full of apples

Get a cute 10 year old to pick a googillion of them

Juggle a few

Wash the pesticides away

Keep washing...
Find a little one to wear your jacket when the sun gets too hot


Cut away the yucky parts

Throw the apples into the grinder
Make sure there's a mesh screen in there
Be sure to have a Grandma to supervise the process

Grab a couple of strong guys to turn the crank on the apple press. Make sure at least one of them is really hot, like that guy in the black
Catch the juice in a bucket with another mesh sieve
Be sure to have little taste testers on hand
Pour the apple dung into the scoop of the tractor -- your garden will love you for that

Clean out the filters
Pour the juice into the jugs, but make sure your taste tester gets one final sip -- you'll just love the diapers you change the next day

Do it just the way Judy says -- the lady knows what she's talking about
Line up the jugs. Make sure all the handles are turned the correct way and keep the jugs in rows of ten. But only if you have a slight case of anal-retentive obsessiveness like me.

End the day with soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, and carrot cake...and a birthday party for a 3 year old little princess

18 October 2008

Wasting Time

It's not as though I don't have other things to do...

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Bedtime Be Darned!

Last night we got a little spontaneous and let the kids stay up past their bedtime so we could watch the Day boys perform at halftime of the Skyview/Mountain Crest football game. It took me 45 minutes to get everyone ready (hurry! go to the bathroom...where are your panties?...okay, get your jeans on...wait! don't take off your leggings -- leggings THEN jeans!...wait, you have to put your socks on before your boots!...no, don't take off your jeans!...what? you have to go to the bathroom again?...okay, coats, boots, gloves, hats...no, we're not going to play in the snow...no there isnt any snow at the parade...no we're not GOING to a parade, it's a football game...okay, everyone in the car! I felt like we were in A Christmas Story.

We got to the high school about 15 minutes before halftime and after looking for a parking space for several minutes, we decided I'd just take the kids in while Stanton parked. Brigham was asleep when I opened the door so the girls and I went in the stadium without the boys.

The girls loved the cheerleaders and screaming when a touchdown was scored, but I'm sure glad we didn't get there any earlier. Lily had a hard time keeping it together. I forgot how fun a good football game really is. Skyview has a pretty good team this year and it was a lot of fun to watch them (2 of the players are from our neighborhood). The band came out and did their great Jekyll & Hyde show. The band was excellent and it was fun for the girls to see the boys in their full uniforms (they were not pleased that their hats were low on their faces, though). It was a great performance and Trudy took us home after halftime. Brig was already in bed and the girls were really good to go right down when we got home.

Bedtimes be darned, indeed. It was a very fun night and even though the girls were more tired today (and it was quite obvious they were), it was so worth it for a great memory. Jared turned 18 this week, so I'm realizing that the girls' time with this great kid is starting to run short. We'll take as much as we can get. And thankfully, Joe & Nate are still around for a few years. We really are lucky to know this neat family.

I took some pics on my phone, not the greatest quality, but they'll do.

Cannon's Blessing

We celebrated our sweet little Cannon this weekend with a family luncheon and his blessing in church. It is always so fun to be with our extended family and we really love that so many make the effort to attend these events.

A few pictures from Sunday...

Okay, this one's from Saturday, my dad & the kids reading "Kate & the Beanstalk." Brigham loves to say "Fee, Fi, Fo, Fum'n"

Me & my Brig in his dapper Sunday suit.

Lily & me.

I'm noticing lately that we wear these dresses a lot.

Lily being a great big sis.

Chloe with my cousins, Chrystal & Whitney

Cindy, I know you want to kick me right now! I just think it's funny to see grown ups from a 3 year old's perspective.

Me & my sharp dressed little guy.

Stanton & Cannon

I have to say, I have some handsome men in my life.
I love that they are all wearing red ties with their suits.

Stanton gave such a nice blessing. A few things I remember from it...he blessed him that he would learn and be excited to be baptized. He blessed him to understand that the most important calling he will fulfill in the church will be as a husband and a father. He blessed him to understand that those are the callings that are really important and that he will be blessed with much revelation in those callings.
I wish I could remember more, but I was...ahem...a bit distracted by the little'ns.

Also, I took Cannon to his 2 month check-up on Thursday. No one got locked in a room, success! Dr. McKenna noticed Cannon is favoring his right side and that his head is a bit deformed (his right side is further forward - ear & forehead, mostly) because of it. The condition is called torticollis. He'll be starting physical therapy this week to help lengthen and develop the muscle in his neck. It's certainly not great news, but considering the other health concerns we've dealt with, this will be just fine. Physical therapy is highly successful and if it doesn't work out, then there is still the option of a helmet to correct the plagiocephaly. Dr. McKenna is confident we've caught it early enough, though, so PT should do the job.

Winner Announced!

We have a winner in the Emily Allen Photography giveaway!

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Kimberly! Yay, Kim! Won't that be fun with a brand new baby? Email Emily at emilyallen at live dot com to set things up.

And if you didn't win, remember Emily is offering 50% off the session fee for anyone who entered the giveaway.

Hurry Hurry Hurry! Enter the Giveaway -- It's Closing Tonight!

You only have a few more hours to enter the giveaway for a photo shoot with Emily! Tell all your friends to enter, too.

Hey, you family that read -- sign up!

Hey, you neighborhood friends that read -- sign up!

Go here for details and to enter.

Confessions and a Tag

Confession:
I don't forward emails.
Confession:
I delete email forwards before reading them.
Confession:
I don't always read blog tag posts.
Confession:
I don't always do blog tag posts when I'm tagged.
Confession:
I don't feel bad about this.
Confession:
Sometimes I want to do a tag and then think other people will just skip over it like I often do.
Resolution:
I'm going to not care if you skip over my tag posts like I sometimes do yours. I'm going to do them when I want to and ignore them when I don't. Who knows, maybe the kids'll enjoy reading these less than important tidbits one day.

Thanks, Liz, for the meme.

A List of Eights

8 TV Shows I Love to Watch
1. The Office
2. The Office
3. Life
4. Law & Order: SVU
5. American Idol
6. Seinfeld
7. The Office
8. KSL News at 10. Especially the weather. I kind of totally have a crush on Kevin Eubank...

8 Things that Happened Yesterday
1. Talked on the phone to my Aunt Sheri for 53 minutes
2. Tried a new hairdo on Lily. I didn't make it to the messy bun part, though.
3. Did not work out (see #s 1 and 7 -- totally worth it)
4. Went grocery shopping for the first time with all four kids. Made it home with every single one of them.
5. Made a new recipe for dinner -- had to seriously rework the recipe to use what I had on hand. Kids ate 2-5 helpings each. What?
6. Read to the kids for over an hour throughout the day. By the end of an excruciatingly long lovely version of Jack & The Beanstalk, I thought my head might explode.
7. Play date with Angie, Ethan, & Trevor. It was so nice to catch up.
8. Made Cheesy Mini Pumpkin snacks for Chloe's preschool tomorrow. Again, changed the recipe a bit - I used whole grain goldfish crackers on the outside and low fat cream cheese for the ball. And I got sick of trying to make the green onion vines so I bagged that.

8 Favorite Places to Eat
1. Hamilton's
2. Maddox
3. Cafe Rio
4. Rupe's Burgers
5. Le Nonne
6. Anchor Bar. I would consider moving back to Buffalo if only for this restaurant.
7. Any number of restaurants in Buffalo. Best restaurant town ever.
8. Good Mexican. Is there any good Mexican in Cache Valley? I haven't found it. You know, if I ever open a restaurant, I'm going to call it Good Mexican. That's what we're all looking for anyway, isn't it?

8 Things I Am Looking Forward To
1. Hawaii in November
2. Cannon's baby blessing on Sunday (and all the family that equals)
3. Reading bythelbs latest post
4. A day without Lily screaming or crying
5. Apple Cider day with the Allens
6. Christmas
7. Triathlon in the Spring
8. Working out

8 Things on My Wish List
1. Photoshop & Illustrator for the Mac
2. Having house, car, business debt completely paid off
3. A new blog design
4. Good Mexican food
5. A personal decorator for my house
6. To fit in my pre-pregnancy jeans without getting a stomach ache
7. To serve a service mission with Stanton
8. My kids to be nice, productive, faithful grown-ups

8 People I Tag
You know I'm not going to do this. But if you want to play along, tell me in the comments and I'll come visit you...

We Did It!

I can't believe it. We actually went grocery shopping. All of us. Me + 4 kids under 4. We did it! There were a few stops to re-discuss the rules, there was one minor injury, there were several groceries dropped from the cart (intentionally and not). BUT, there were no temper tantrums and I actually made it home with all 4 children! Woot!

I bought Thomas & Diego underwear for Brigham. I'm really not sure if I'm ready to do this, though. Yikes.

Things I Forgot

When collecting my Kids Lately tidbits, I forgot to record a couple of things.

Cannon just might be the most content baby ever. Really. The child does not cry. He fusses to tell you he's hungry and as soon as you pick him up, he stops fussing. I am quite certain that he's only "cried" as in "really really cried" two times. I sometimes worry that he's too content. But then I realize I'm probably looking a gift horse in the mouth. But still, should I worry about this? Really. He's so so content. He doesn't really interact much -- he smiles here and there, but doesn't really make eye contact. I realize he's only 2 months old (tomorrow!) and there's definitely a sliding scale as to when babies "normally" do things, but I still can't help but worry a little. For the record, though, I am totally appreciating his contentedness. He is an angel and exactly what I've needed for a 4th baby. I am loving him so much. But should I be worried?
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Brigham is no longer using his binky at night. We're completely done with it. About 3 or 4 weeks ago, Stanton put him down for a nap without it by accident. That was all the motivation I needed. We didn't make a big deal about it, it just disappeared. He found a few stashed around the house, but all I had to do was ask him to throw it away. It doesn't hurt that he loves to throw things away (a trait he inherited from his mother). Yesterday I caught him throwing away his church tie. Thank goodness I caught him.

Another Brigham thing...I wonder if he's ready to potty train? Everytime he pottys in his diaper he comes up and says "Mom, I tinko (tinkled)." The girls never did this so I'm not sure if it's a sign he's ready. I really don't know if I'm ready to do that right now...

And Brigham really does start every sentence with "Mom,..." I love it.

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Chloe has been writing words lately. She will disappear for 20 minutes or so and come back with a grin on her face and notebook in hand. Here are a couple of things she's written lately:

It says "Bruch yooor teeth" Fitting for a daughter of a dentist, right?

This one says "Buthrs (brothers), unbrelu (umbrella), cat, bat, wichat (I wish I hadn't written it correctly on there, sorry Chloe), hat, mom, dad, sisdr"
I am loving loving loving her spelling. I love to see a little mind at work sounding out words. Sometimes I think kids' versions of words make more sense.
I just noticed that she wrote the second "l" in unbrelu underneath...and backwards. Wow, my heart is officially warm right now...

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And this is not about the kids...but a tri training update: I'm now swimming 300 meters, running about 2.5 miles, and biking 11 miles. It usually goes swim + run on one day then bike the next. And when I say "running" I mean run 9 minutes, walk 1, run 3, walk 1, etc. It's part of the training schedule and it is genius. Knowing you've got a minute to catch your breath makes it so much easier to push through the sometimes tough running. Today was the running and it was harder than usual, but I also added some incline (mild, just between 2-3.5 on the treadmill) so it would be more like road running. I know I need to get out and bike and run on the road, but there's no kids club on the road, so I'm trying to add some incline and resistance when I run and bike. It sure is tempting to leave things flat, though.

I haven't really lost any weight, but I feel better and can suck it all in more easily. I have also noticed my love handles are getting a little smaller. Also, at the recommendation of my friend Brooke, I bought a sucker-inner (you know, like Spanx). It sure makes me want to work out more so I can look that smooth and skinny without the help of really tight spandex.

I love this triathlon training program so much. I'm doing the 10 Week Sprint Distance Program -- Beginner (it's in pdf format, so I don't know how to link it, of course). It's awesome and exactly what I need right now to get me motivated and working out.

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I was just looking through my iPhoto folders and found these pictures. I love when I find things that I forgot about. Finding forgotten about cute photos of the kids is like finding a 10 dollar bill in Stanton's jeans when doing the laundry. Not as great as finding my wedding ring in a pair of pants pockets 7 months after I lost it (which really happened), but definitely as great as finding money when doing laundry.