Our Esprit

February and April

2012-02-08T11:09:00.001-08:00

Two months out of the year that give me heartburn.

Why? Because those are the months out of each year Uncle Sam forces me to have my elderly vehicles checked for emissions and safety. Maybe this isn't a big deal for you folks with cars manufactured in the year 00 or higher but for us it tends to be a problem.

This year the Lord was smilin' on us because there was no check engine light on the dash when February rolled around. Honestly, the things some people take for granted!

Naturally, I thought it was in the bag. Gonna pass for sure....right??

Wrong.

Apparently a car needs a tailpipe and a muffler in order to pass inspection. Who knew?

p.s. I thought about arguing that it had passed for the last 3 years without either but I didn't think it would help my case...

2012

2012-01-29T10:07:00.000-08:00

Some things I don't want to forget about January 2012.

-Drying Lola's hair after her bath. I turn the thermostat up a degree so the heater comes on (she thinks it's magic). We sit on the floor of my bedroom and she puts her little feet on the heat vent and covers them up with my robe.

-Forrest lost his first tooth a few weeks ago. The space in his teeth gives him the cutest lisp.

-Eli's chubby legs. I cannot get enough of them. I just want to squeeze them and kiss them all day. He's a honey for sure.

-Right now I am (sloppily) patching a quilt that Quinn's mother made for us after we got married. I'm patching it because our psychotic dog ripped it up while using it in a game of 'be annoying with a tennis ball'.

I realized that I have spent that dog's entire life being really pissed at her and then loving her afterwards. She's beginning to ail and I have to wonder...when she's gone and I use the quilt will I look at the patches and lovingly remember all the good times we had (most of them pre-children of course) or will I just remember all the times she made me want to push her out of the car while driving by the humane society.

2011 Christmas Post

2012-01-04T08:59:00.001-08:00

Yes it came and went. It was fantastic.

Highlights:

Now, this was a very big deal to some around our house.

Merry Christmas Pops.

Have you ever seen a cuter owl in your entire life?

Good old Santa did not forget to bring Ashes something.

Now if you'll excuse me I guess I had better go find a wire hanger because somehow the bathroom door got locked with the light on and nobody inside.

Book Report

2011-12-18T13:56:00.001-08:00

Just so you know I have a penchant for nerdy, anthropological, non-fiction books.

Consequently I was intrigued when Quinn came home from work with one written by a former FBI counterintelligence officer about nonverbal behavior, specifically subconscious non-verbal behavior. It's called What Every Body is Saying written by Joe Navarro.

The person who writes the article in US Magazine about how they can tell Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise are having marital issues by their body language at the park must have read this book.

Here are some gems:

This is called arms akimbo.
It's a territorial behavior used to "assert dominance and project an image of authority." I'm pretty sure I see cops standing like this all the time.

This is called genital framing. Ahem.
According to this book it's a "powerful dominance display." When you see a man do this, in essence he is saying, "check me out, I'm a virile male." It reminds me of Todd Packer...you know Michael Scott's crass friend from The Office.

This is called steepling.
Apparently it's one of the most powerful displays of confidence we possess. On a side note, Donald Trump was steepling during his entire interview with Barbara Walters that I watched last week.

This is called "the regal stance"
When someone is standing this way they are communicating that they are of a higher status and that they don't want you to touch them. It makes me think of a boss I used to have....

Did you know that when you compress your lips like this it is, "very indicative of true negative sentiment." There is usually stress or anxiety driving this behavior.

Since I read the book I keep asking Quinn questions I think might make him mad to see if he compresses his lips. I was also paying attention to which couples at the ward Christmas party are leaning toward each other or away from each other and who's playing footsie (a good sign of a happy relationship).

My Sweetest Lola

2011-12-14T13:00:00.000-08:00

My friend, Annie, was subbing in nursery a few Sundays back and told Quinn a story about our dear Lola.

Apparently Lola was reading a book when a boy tried to take it away from her. Annie told the boy he could have his turn with the book as soon as Lola was done.

When Quinn got to this point in telling me the story my chest slightly puffed up in pride because surely this was going to be an example of what an excellent sharer Lola had become as a result of her mother's fine teaching and example.

Hmm.

As the story goes, instead of sweetly smiling and letting the little boy have a turn, her face turned contrary and she declared, "I will never be done with this book."

L'il Critters Omega-3 Gummy Fish

2011-12-08T10:14:00.000-08:00

"kids love'em"
"amazing new taste"
"no fishy taste"

All exerpts from the label.

Quinn popped the top and took a whiff and said, "well...it doesn't smell like a live fish anyway."

Good thing Costco has a good return policy.

c'mon do it

2011-11-29T09:07:00.000-08:00

If you're still trying to decide which charity to donate to this year, please consider supporting The Chordoma Foundation. On Saturday we participated in a 5K in memory of my neighbors' sweet son who tragically died at age 7 of a chordoma tumor two years ago.

I couldn't get the link function to work but go to www.chordomafoundation.org to donate.

Here's Quinn and the kids in our "team Jared Vance" t-shirts.

It was a beautiful event to participate in and our love and prayers go out to this amazing family.

Thanksgiving

2011-11-19T21:17:00.000-08:00

Sandwiched inbetween "spiderman" and "my grandma and grandma" is...

Yes. Apparently, Forrest is thankful for his, uh, chicken bones.

Daily drama

2011-11-16T06:19:00.000-08:00

Last night the chair broke.

This morning the mirror shattered all over my bedroom thanks to the baby.

In case you're wondering, this is a picture of a mirror inside of my garbage can. Super disgusting.(not pictured is me in my front yard this morning taking pictures inside my garbage can while wearing my pajamas.)

There were 2 silver linings to the broken mirror: 1. The baby wasn't cut. Obviously. 2. I finally vacuumed my bedroom floor.

Now hurry and click somewhere else so you don't have to look at that gross garbage picture anymore. HURRY.

Eli's 1

2011-11-15T12:55:00.000-08:00

My baby turned one!

Oh my but do I love him

Some things you should know about Eli.

1. He has started growling the word no at us. The funny thing is that he sounds just like Lola sounds when she growls the word no at him.
2. When he gets really excited about something (like food) he twirls his feet around in little circles. So adorable.
3. He is a total daddy's boy. He likes me OK when Quinn isn't around but when Daddy's home the kid wants nothin' to do with me.

Did I mention how much I love him?
Cuz I do.
He's a gummy bear.

Happy birthday baby.

An Interrogation and Possibly a Solution

2011-11-10T10:13:00.000-08:00

Are you tired of your hair? If your answer is no, then good for you. If your answer is yes, read on.

Are you a total cheapskate? If your answer is no, then by all means, go to a salon and pay $120.00 to get your hair done (princess what?). If your answer is yes, read on.

Is your hair dark brown or black? If your answer is no, I'm sorry I can't help you. If your answer is yes, read on mi amiga.

Anyone care to ombre????? (I really have no clue how to spell that...hombre or ombre???) That's what the kids are callin' it. Here is a picture of my ombre hair:

I realize that I am making a horribly ugly kissy face in that picture and I apologize for that. Here's the back. Sorry it's a phone picture and the lighting in my bathroom is not great.

If you think it's hideously ugly and would rather sinead o'connor than do that to your hair I can respect that but if you might want to try it yourself....read on!

The 12 year old at Sally Beauty Supply with pink/black/white hair sent me home with these supplies:

Not pictured is a dry packet of powder to mix with the pink bottle of developer. So we have the dry packet of bleach powder, developer, "darkest brown" dye for the old rootsies, and a brush. It all cost less than $15.00.

First, I dyed my roots according to the package instructions.

The next step is to convince your mother and sister to spend their Friday night at your place experimenting on your hair. Once that's taken care of, you can begin.

My lovely sister spent approximately 3 hours (only a slight exaggeration) ratting my hair into a giant globe. I'm talking Diana Ross, here. The ratting of the hair is vital because it will make it so you don't have a blunt line of color. The idea is a gradual change of color.

Next, mix the powder bleach packet with the pink developer. The 12 year old's instructions were to aim for the consistency of yogurt.

Next, have your mother paint bleach on the ends of your hair by section. You'll want to wrap each section in foil to pretend you're at the salon and also to protect the rest of your hair from spots of bleach...unless you're going for the "leopard look". Paint the bleach up as high as you want your color to go. We didn't go super high up on my hair- we opted for conservative since we had no clue what we were doing. Leave it on for 25 minutes or until you have reached the color your heart desires.

I quit being lazy and pulled out my point-and-shoot and took a better pic.

I love it. Thanks mom and chels!!

have a laugh on lola

2011-11-08T19:46:00.000-08:00

Here's the scene: Lola's in time out in the corner and she's shouting at me trying to get my attention.

Lola: IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII HHHHHHAAAAAAAAAVVEEEE AAAAAAAAA TUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUMMYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACHE!!!!!!!!!!! IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII HHHHHHAAAAAAAAAVVVVVVVEEEE AAAAAAAAA TUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUMMYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACHE!!!!!!!!!!!IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII HHHHHHAAAAAAAAAVVVVVVVEEEEEE AAAAAAAAA TUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUMMYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACHE!!!!!!!!!!!IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII HHHHHHAAAAAAAAAVVVVVVVEE AAAAAAAAA TUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUMMYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACHE!!!!!!!!!!!

This goes on for 3 minutes.

I get her out of time out and we have our little talk and hug and stuff then she asks me with a straight face. "Um, Mommy. What means a tummy ache?"

ta da and halloween

2011-11-04T12:32:00.000-07:00

The chest I mentioned yesterday needed some carpentry work that I wasn't feeling ambitious enough for. Oh yeah it also happens to be locked with the key in an envelope on the inside (how did that happen??! I really have no idea). I wasn't quite sure how to solve that problem...so I did something else.

Here is a before picture of an old Motorola record player I found at the DI for $10.00:

I gave it a little bit of love and voila! I LOVE love love it.

I covered the speakers with some of that faux tin stuff people use for kitchen backsplashes. It was kinda pricey ($20 per sheet and I needed 2). I weally wuv it.

Halloween. Lola, the lovely little witchy-poo.

Here's lizzie and sara dressed as Bethany Hamilton and the shark that ate her arm.

I'm going to go out on a limb (he he) here and say that was the best costume at my parent's Halloween party. Which was super fun. Here are the rest of us biotches:

Forrest, I am your mother. Please ignore my divey house in the background.

And seriously. Eli the dragon. He looked so cute but HATED his costume. He just kept pulling the hood off. There were pants that went with it but for some reason they aren't on in this picture. I can't believe this boy will turn 1 next week!! What the what!

The End.

ah yes, the blog

2011-11-03T08:09:00.000-07:00

Spray painting weather is quickly disappearing and I have two projects waiting in my queue (aka the garage). My phone says it's supposed to get up to 55 degrees today...so I'm going to seize the day.(Anyone else thinking of Newsies??)

I've scrounged up a couple of bucks to get some orange spray paint, legs for a chest I found at the DI (do they sell legs for stuff at Home Depot? I'm gonna find out today), some sandpaper, and maybe I'll swing by TJ Maxx for some orange pillows.

I'm feeling hopeful that I will post the after pictures and not leave another unfinished blog post--like the paper towel one. It really wasn't my fault because my Costco stopped selling the smaller size paper towels so I couldn't finish the experiment. I was also informed of how unscientific my experiment was anyway.

I digress. As soon as my adorable Eli wakes up I'm off to the hardware store!

The Blog Days of Summer Part III: LAKE POWELL

2011-09-14T21:18:00.000-07:00

My cousin Sara invited us to spend a week in Lake Powell with her family. It.was.awesome.

lola

dad and eli

kids on a blanket

forr

grant

Grandpa Paul was so much fun.

mom and eli

kids and squeegees. wow I have no idea how to spell that word.

Thanks again Sara and Ryan. Lake Powell is Lake Powell after all but the company was what made the trip so great.

The Blog Days of Summer Part II: THE GREAT FLOOD OF 2011

2011-09-06T09:10:00.001-07:00

I came home from the water park one afternoon in mid-July to find that my entire basement had been filling with water all day long.

It sucked.

The whole neighborhood came over with their shop-vacs though.

That part was awesome.

The Blog Days of Summer Part I: THE PARTY

2011-09-01T10:54:00.000-07:00

Forrs turned 5 so naturally we threw him a wicked-awesome super-hero party!

There were hot dogs and a batman cake,

masks and capes

did I mention the capes?

because they were freakin' awesome

Quinn spray painted these bad boys (and girls). He did an awesome job. They were the best part of the party by far. (sorry- I can't figure out how to crop pics in microsoft paint to give you a close-up of the capes grandma's holding)

We played some games, including Pin the Bat on the Batman

The Hulk Juice (aka kool aid + dry ice)

Quinn even spray-painted Eli a onsie....awwww

Forrest- just know that you are seriously an awesome kid. I tell Heavenly Father thanks every day for letting me be your mommy. Love you!

lola's birthday

2011-06-24T14:39:00.000-07:00

3 already.

Lola- when you grow up and decide you want to read mom's blog and find this particular birthday post I want you to know that I loved making you a chocolate cake with pink frosting and a princess on top. I also loved seeing your face when you woke up on your birthday and saw the living room floor completely covered in balloons that your daddy spent all night blowing up for you. I also want you to know that I love you so much it hurts inside my chest when I think about it.

Also, you probably won't remember but we went to the zoo on the day before your birthday and the big robot dinosaurs scared you right out of your pants!

Love you Lola- Happy Birthday!

hands down, best quote of the day goes to:

2011-06-01T18:06:00.000-07:00

Forrest...

With, "Chuck E Cheese's rhymes with Jesus"

the big reveal

2011-05-30T14:53:00.000-07:00

Quinn had to jack-hammer some concrete in our front yard after our water main broke. We decided to replace it with some tinted, stamped concrete. Brace yourself for the longest blog post in history.
There was lots of prep work. LOTS.

Taking a break from the prep work:

We're lucky to have awesome neighbors that came over to help.

We're also lucky to have Ron. He's my brother-in-law. He's also the man with the tools and the know-how. Ron- thank you thank you thank you.

This is what Eli did during our busy week:

All ready for the cement truck:

and here it is:

Working so hard:

Hayden was working hard babysitting Eli:

So was grams. Oh my but does that baby have the chubbiest cheeks!!

This is Lou. I don't know him. He showed up with Ron and did a beautiful job on our stairs. Thanks Lou.

washing out wheelbarrow

chels and andrew

Here is a very dirty man smiling with the satisfaction of a job well done:

This is my dad. Dad- thanks for helping us out every.single.time. we have a problem or are working on a project. You're the best.

Guess what the best part is?
IT'S FINISHED!!!!

You can't really see how cool the color looks due to my crappy point and shoot.

I don't know how to properly express how grateful we are to all our friends and loved ones who were willing to come out and help us with our project. THANK YOU!!!!!

bits and pieces

2011-05-17T12:36:00.000-07:00

A numbered list of blogworthy items:

1. We're currently knee-deep in an exhausting front yard makeover which should come to a head on Saturday (provided it isn't snowing). Maybe I'll post pictures when it's done. But if I'm being honest- it's not likely that I'll actually get around to doing that. We'll see.

2. Lola has taken an excerpt from a children's book about Samson: "Oh Lord, make me strong just one more time," and she keeps saying it at random times when doing something difficult. Like when trying to open the front door. Or going number 2.

3. Last Sunday, out of the corner of my eye, I saw Forrest shovel a huge handful of sacrament bread into his mouth while giving the deacon a sideways glace. Then, with a straight face he told me, "it wasn't more than one piece...it was just one really large piece."

4. Don't tell the environmentalists but I keep running my dishwasher nearly empty so I don't have to wash bottles. I hate hate HATE washing out bottles.

5. If you want a laugh and don't have cable, turn your TV to channel 16-2 after 10 pm. They play episodes of He-man. They are super-funny but I think the show would be a little more realistic if they showed Prince Adam or He-man in a tanning bed, getting his roots touched up, and having his little friend with the "O" on his nightgown injecting him in the behind with anabolic steroids.

The End

mother's day and pooheads

2011-05-10T20:42:00.000-07:00

I think Forr got sick of Lola ceaselessly asking me if it was still mother's day and then upon learning that, yes, it was still mother's day, acting just delighted and wishing me a happy mother's day (on a side note: I did not get sick of Lola's adorable mother's day antics).

After one such sweet mother's day wish from Lola, Forrest said, jealously, from the backseat of the car, "well, happy boy's day to me because I'm a boy."

Just as an aside, he also called our local ecclesiastical leader a poohead several times on Saturday night. Is it bad that my first reaction upon hearing this was to laugh??

And I know that I have had a third child for six months and still haven't updated my blog header to include him. I am working on it...

little trip

2011-04-26T13:47:00.000-07:00

In search of some warmth we packed up the troops and headed down south for the weekend.

We wend along with our hipster friends and their adorable boys.

at the dunes

playing in the fountains at the arts festival

a boy and his scone

will ya look at that sunshine???

I'm ready to go back this weekend to escape the snow that's in the forcast for tomorrow (sob).

paper towels

2011-04-13T14:34:00.000-07:00

I have been giving them some thought.

I usually buy Kirkland brand because they're cheaper than Bounty at Costco. Perhaps you've noticed that Kirkland paper towels are perforated in huge sheets whereas the Bounty paper towels offer the "half-sheet" perforation.

My question to you is: does the Bounty roll of "half-sheet" perforated paper towels last longer than the Kirkland "full-sheet" perforated ones because you are ripping a smaller towel with each use?

My second question to you is: do you even care?

In case you do care (or are extremely bored), I have devised a little paper towel experiment. I have one roll of Kirkland paper towels left but purchased Bounty paper towels on my last Costco run. I started the Kirkland paper towels on 4/12 (I wrote it on the calendar). I'm gonna find out which is really the better deal.

I know you are all just dying with excitement about this. I will be sure to post the outcome.

ew yuck yuck yuck

2011-04-11T08:35:00.000-07:00

and no thanks to you, tall people.

I spied the top of my little shelf in my kitchen. The one that's just above eye level- well my eye level. What I found was pretty disgusting. Dusty and disgusting.

Quinn, if you read this blog, you are 6'2" (a full foot taller than myself). Could you have clued me in on how disgusting that shelf looked?

If you are taller than me (pretty sure you are) and have visited my house and saw my shelf- I'm sorry.

Next stop- the top of the fridge, range hood, door jams....

oh yes, the blog

2011-04-08T12:51:00.000-07:00

what the heck's been goin on?

well...

the water main broke. LAME. Especially for Quinn who jackhammered for 8 hours straight (with the help of my pops- THANKS DAD).

Eli is adorable and adored. He is such a funny little baby.

Forr had his first soccer game. It was very....interesting. He has some smack-talking issues he needs to work out before the next game. We'll just leave it at that.

Is there anything sweeter than a daddy and his daughter? I think not.

simple math

2011-02-24T10:34:00.000-08:00

Apparently mae + quinn = chubby cheeks. Proof, if you like:

Forr:

Lola:

And, finally, the newest member of the club, Elias:

Heaven help me, I just can't stop kissin em.

helpful kitchen hints

2011-02-19T11:07:00.000-08:00

1. Don't use your stove top as a counter (aka- don't pile crap on it).
2. Make sure you turn on the correct burner.

Failure to follow these simple rules may ruin your cookbook and fill your kitchen with acrid fumes that make your dog sneeze ten thousand times.

that about sums it up

2011-02-16T09:38:00.000-08:00

1. My cute niece has Beiber-fever so I keep hearing his CD when I see her. Now I can't stop singing "baby, baby, baby, oooh" to my baby.

2. Will The Biggest Loser people please send their doctor to makeover week so they can do something about his weird hair??

3. I did the Insanity fit test this morning and discovered I'm way less coordinated and in shape than I thought. I also don't think I'll be able to walk tomorrow.

4. Next time I'm meeting someone at a gas station to make a ksl.com exchange I will remember to ask what kind of car they drive. It would eliminate some embarassing staring issues.

4. Note to self: make sure you're signed into your own google account (not your husbands) when making comments on your friends blogs. It might seem weird and creepy to your friends to have your husband making silly comments on their blogs...

5. Is anyone else really annoyed by the woman in the RC Willey commercials??

the price you pay

2011-02-02T13:19:00.000-08:00

On the morning these photos were taken (since I'm not a same-day blogger...wish I was) I did some yoga, took a shower, and had a nice lenghthy chat with my cousin.

I guess my rowdies were bored because they tore up this box.

No big deal really. Thing I really wanted to share with you was the reason this little girl's face and hair is wet.

You can't really tell in the photo but she's got wet dreds and her shirt is wet also.

The reason? She's been drinking from the dog's dish.

None of this really disturbs me all that much. I figure...it's the price I'm willing to pay for a bit of freedom. You know- to do the yoga and shower and talk on the phone.

Completely unrelated but Quinn painted the kids' faces over the weekend. They were thrilled.

2011-01-27T13:56:00.000-08:00

The weatherman predicted sunny and 42 degrees. It sounded heavenly so we went to the zoo.

Apparently we were the only ones who thought it was a good idea.

We shared the road with a turkey.

And a peacock.

The kids didn't have to clamber around or crane their necks to get a good view of the elephants. Why was the elephant eating a Christmas tree? I have no idea.

The baby orangutan seemed excited to have some visitors.

Forr was impressed with the large machinery and struck up a conversation with the construction guys. It turns out they were building a bridge. It also turns out that Forr loooooves bridges. His knack for conversation makes me think of his namesake.

Losey was as cute as ever. Sugar and spice, this one. LOVE this girl

.

Oh, and Eli. He barely made a peep. Such a good baby.

Sigh. I can't wait for Spring.

Dear Diary

2011-01-22T14:34:00.000-08:00

This is my husband.

What a handsome guy, eh?

Love the bald head.

Love love love the beard.

Love the crow's feet.

In this picture, however, the thing I find absolutely sexy is the dishtowel slung over his shoulder. It means he's been doing dishes and here he is washing the counter. Oh my. Someone get me a cold glass of water.

In other news:

Last week Forr told one of Quinn's co-workers that the blue eyeshadow she had caked on her eyes made him want to laugh. And laugh he did.
I realize my house is a hideous mess- we were putting away Christmas. Not to say it wouldn't be a hideous mess anyway.

Lola says adorable 2 year-oldish things like calling Alice in Wonderland Alice in Laundryland. And she named the little wooden puppet my parents brought her back from Italy Hokeydokeydoe which I'm pretty sure means Pinocchio.

Elias is now smiling lots. I think he is a real person after all instead of a cute little creature that just eats and sleeps. He is the best.baby.ever.

I realize he isn't smiling in any of these pictures. But he looks cute anyway.

obligatory christmas post

2010-12-28T14:41:00.000-08:00

Anyone else experiencing the post-christmas blues? Quinn went back to work after a spectacular 5 day weekend so I was feeling blue. Maybe if I tell you about the weekend I will feel better.

It started with Christmas lights at temple square. A fine time was had by all (except for poor Sara. You can read about her story here).

Here's Grandma and Grandpa

Lola sat on Uncle Andrew's shoulders and sang him Christmas carols.

It also included a trip to Santa who may have smelled like beef and cheese. Thankfully, Forrest forgot to ask him if he was a FAKE Santa like he was planning. Geez...that kid.

It also included some stocking-ed feet and it looks like there may have been some hurt feelings. Maybe the stockings were too tight...

It also included an awesome lego boat that I really had fun building with Forr.

Quinn's fav present. He said he wanted it to be tight to show off his muscles.

It also involved an awesome baby. We love our Eli.

It ended on Monday night with my sweetie taking me to the movies. We saw True Grit. It was fantastic.

If you should one day happen to find yourself…

2010-12-17T07:13:00.000-08:00

With a 4 year old, a 2 year old, and a newborn, firstly you should consider yourself extremely blessed. Secondly, you should consider these things which might make your life a bit easier:

1. If aforementioned 4 and 2 year olds share a room and wake up in the wee hours (wee hours= any time before your sleep-deprived self would like to get out of bed) consider turning the channel of your tv to 16-2 (the channel that plays cartoons and Montell Williams commercials all the time) each night after you and the hubs finish watching episodes of Madmen. Also, teach your kids how to turn on the tv by themselves.
2. Put some food that they will eat (I would suggest goldfish crackers and chocolate teddy grahams) in a place where they can reach it. Warning: these items will disappear quickly and might constitute the children’s breakfast on some(most) mornings. However, this, along with suggestion #1 will allow you to sleep past 5 am. Also, don’t forget to put some plastic cups where they can reach them and don’t get mad when there is water all over the floor. Just be grateful you got to sleep past 5 am.
3. When you sit down to feed the newborn, bring the bottle of hand sanitizer with you. That way, when the other children immediately materialize and begin pawing at the baby you can kill the germs causing their snot waterfalls before they infect your teeny tiny baby.
4. Whenever the 2 year old asks you to “mawy” (marry) you must certainly agree to do it. Marrying or mawying means you go into the kitchen where the music is playing, join hands and dance. You must do this because your 2 year old is adorable, it really is fun, and finally, because she will grow up and someday mawy some guy for real.
5. Learn to appreciate the 4 year old’s…um…zest for life. Understand that his need to make random high-pitched noises and fire his toy gun repeatedly in your ear are a result of being cooped up inside for a month. Write down some of the awesome things he says.
6. Remember how quickly the newborn phase passes and snuggle this warm, soft piece of heaven all day long.
7. Also remember every day that life is a progress, not a station. Try not to feel so sad that these days aren’t going to last forever that you don’t properly appreciate and enjoy them.

Just so you know, I chicken-pecked this entire post while pumping.
Moooooooooo

Meet Eli

2010-11-17T13:22:00.000-08:00

Elias Walker Evans born 11/12/10 at 1:30 pm 5 lbs. 15 oz.

He surprised us all by coming 3 weeks plus 1 day early. What a happy surprise!

Mommy loves him

Daddy loves him

Forr and Lo love him too

Some details:
I started having regular contractions last Thursday at about 7:30 pm. Considering my other babies were late and I had to be induced with both, I was sure I was in fake labor and the contractions would stop. Alas, they kept coming. Around 11:00 pm I informed my sweet husband that we should possibly pack some bags.

We arrived at the hospital around 2:00 am on Friday morning where my contractions decided to slooooooow waaaaaaay down. Frustrating. We hung out and hung out and walked around the maternity ward until the nurse broke my water around 12:45 pm. Baby came like a freight train! Neither the doctor nor the doula made it in time for the delivery. Two sweet nurses delivered the baby. It was exciting. Eli's delivery was a beautiful experience which I will never forget. Quinn was the best doula ever! He was truly amazing.

We have been home for just a week and our baby has been having trouble gaining weight. It seems like all I do is try to force food into a sleeping baby, pump, and wash bottles. He has another doctor appt tomorrow and I feel like we are on The Biggest Gainer. I hope he has put on some ounces. I'll keep you posted.

The Fabricators

2010-10-21T19:16:00.000-07:00

I just got home from pack meeting where Fabricator No. 1 told the nice couple that lives down the street, "my mom has shawp knives. She cuts my fingews with them."

She also kept telling me yesterday that "Forrest threw Grant down the staiws." Grant is my cousin's toddler who was over here yesterday but absolutely did not get thrown the stairs by Forrest. Unless I totally missed it. Which is a possibility but I'm 99% sure it didn't happen.

Fabricator No. 2.

This one keeps telling me that I fed him peanut cake and that that is why he keeps coughing. Seriously. When I tell him that the only only only time he has had peanuts was when he was a baby he tells me that what I am telling him is just not true.

Nine Years??

2010-10-05T07:14:00.000-07:00

Seriously, nine years?

It seems like yesterday these clueless lovebirds tied the knot.

At the tender age of 21, I knew I loved Quinn. I knew he was a good man. I also knew he was handsome, hilarious, responsible, courageous and kind. But I had no idea how I would feel about him 9 years into it.

I could never have imagined how much my love for him would increase in 9 years. How I would love the crow's feet that now creep up around his eyes when he smiles at me. Or how proud of him I would be for working his arse off to get his Engineering degree so he could take care of his family. Or how my heart would melt at the site of him staring into the face of a newborn baby. Or how he would wake up at 5:30 in the am on our 9th anniversary so there would be beautiful flowers waiting for me on the kitchen table when I woke up.

What can I say? I'm still head over heels for the guy.

Here we are today. A bit older but also a bit wiser.

Happy 9th babe. Here's to 999,999,999,999,999... more.

Love,
Mae

The Incident....and your opinion please

2010-09-30T13:21:00.000-07:00

I had a doctor's appt today (I have just over 9 weeks until a child will be emerging from my body to change my existence forever). We got outta there around 10:30 and did NOT want to go home since we have been cooped up in The Vomitorioum (which has been my house) for the past 2 days.

We decided to kill some time at the library downtown. The kids section was pretty stinkin' cool and Forr and Lo were having a great time exploring. While they were playing Magic School Bus computer games I called my Dad to see if he wanted to meet us for lunch, which he did, and we decided to stay and play for about 5 more minutes and then we were going to head out.

Since it is still GLORIOUS weather we wanted to check out the outdoor part of the kids section on our way out. A few tables with chairs were set up and there were two huge walls with water cascading down next to the tables. There was a woman sitting at one of the tables and she was reading with her daughter who looked to be about 6. There were some pretend hieroglyphics decorating a little cave area with several doors to go in and out. Well, my kids were so happy not to be puking anymore and to be outside in the sunshine so of course they were running around and having fun which included some shouting. Big deal. We were outside.

Apparently it was a big deal because after about 2 minutes the woman at the table slammed her children's book shut and shouted something about peace and quiet. I was perplexed/shocked so I asked her, "Oh, are we bothering you?" She didn't say anything so I let me kids run around some more. She started huffing and puffing and packing all of her stuff up really crazy-like and so I said, "don't leave on our account, we have to leave anyway." to which she didn't reply...she wouldn't even look at me she was just slamming things around and pretty much throwing a childish tantrum. What could I do but laugh out loud...it was funny. She didn't think my laughing was funny and she growled at me. Really, she did. A grown woman growled at me today. I told my kids it was time to go meet Grampa and we left. I was bewildered and spent the entire walk to my car wondering what the heck just happened.

Okay, I get that it was the library and you're supposed to be quiet. But outside in the kids section????? Besides, my kids were being rowdy but it wasn't like they were jumping on her table or anything. I'm not sure what I would have done had we not had the lunch date with my dad. I'm not much one for fighting in general and by nature am not confrontational but I wouldn't want my kids to think that just because someone is being a jerk you have rearrange your day or go back inside or be quiet. I also thought of the saying about wrestling in the mud with a pig...

I don't know. What would you have done? Please share.

Some Very Important Items

2010-09-27T14:08:00.000-07:00

Much to our surprise yesterday after 2 months of flat-out refusing to be in the primary program Forrest decided to join the other children on the stand in the chapel. We didn't pressure him or make a big deal about but I really did hope he would decide to it. He also waltzed up to the microphone to say his part when it was his turn which surprised the heck out of me and totally made me cry. Meanwhile, Lola was beating up my mom and calling her names in the pew.

AND...Lola's potty-trained. All it really took was getting her some tinkerbell panties and she was there. She spent 2 weeks carting around armloads of panties and studying them every time she sat down.

Lola also got some new glittery Sunday shoes that obviously hurt her ankles. She refuses to let me put band-aids on the parts of her foot that the shoes rub raw but also insists on wearing the shoes so she just sort of hobbles around in them. My mom came up to watch the primary program yesterday and we had to laugh because both she and I were wearing shoes that hurt our feet. The three of us hobbled out to the car after the block. What can I say besides: beauty hurts.

And I haven't called Cache Valley to complain about the unmeltable cheese because my to-do list is already too long:
1. Make DDS Appts.
2. Find out if Lola needs a booster shot for the flu shot she got last week.
3. Get Forr's bloodwoork done and get him into the allergist.
4. Get Lola out of her crib and into a bed.
5. Show Forrest pictures of what lungs looks like.
6. Many many household chores are also on this list but I am not going to mention any of them.

can someone please tell me why

2010-09-23T15:32:00.000-07:00

the cheese didn't melt on the pizza I made for dinner last night?

I lovingly kneaded the dough. I seasoned and blackened the chicken. I chopped, seeded, zested, and squeezed the makings of the salsa. I was invested in this pizza.

It wasn't even cheap cheese either. It was decent cheese. Cache Valley Pepper Jack cheese to be exact. Cheese that I have melted on top of nachos and hamburgers and have even melted on this pizza when I have made it in the past.

I just might call Cache Valley and give them a piece of my mind about this unmeltable cheese they are selling.

my dream guy

2010-09-14T15:28:00.000-07:00

Last night was pretty bad between the sick 4-year-old and the newly potty trained 2- year-old that woke up 2wice to go potty in the toilet (weird, right?? but I'm not complaining).

Even though he had to go work today and I didn't, he helped me with the kids last night. I mean pretty much all night -we both woke up feeling as if we hadn't gone to bed.

He called to check on me this morning and I told him I felt like I was moving through molasses. He asked if I needed to go anywhere because he had accidentally taken both sets of keys to work. I told him since I was pretty sure we had enough children's motrin to last through the day he didn't need to worry about getting the keys back to me.

As I was getting out of the shower I heard the kids running into the kitchen screaming, "daddy! daddy!" which they always do when he comes home. He brought me car keys, children's motrin, and a raspberry cream cheese danish from the bakery down the street. All this despite the fact that he is SWAMPED at work.

After lunch, I horked the entire thing down in about 10 seconds and then texted him to tell him thanks and that it was delicious. He texted me back that he loved me.

The truth is that this behavior isn't even rare. This is the guy I get all the time.

I have the best husband ever. ever. ever.

Girls Night Out

2010-09-10T14:37:00.000-07:00

Tuesday morning my sister, Chelsea, my mom, and I (along with my chitlins) headed East for the Cherokee Ranch to go camping.

My mom was so nice to give me a break and hang out with Lola at the toilet (potty training.....argh). Forr and Grandma caught 2 horny toads. We saw a dead tree that had been struck by lightning and completely blown apart. I'm not going to mention any names but someone got walked-in-on by an old man while going to the bathroom at a gas station.

I am indeed blessed to have these two awesome women in my life. Love you mom and Chelsea. What would I do without you?

Q: What's big, hairy, and a bit scary?

2010-08-31T13:58:00.000-07:00

A: Forrest's new pet, Flash the tarantula.

(sorry it's a sucky picture)

Quinn spotted the hairy arachnid on our front porch yesterday morning during the monsoon. I think he (I keep calling it a boy even though I have no idea how you tell if a spider is male or female??) was just trying to get out of the rain. When Quinn asked me to grab him a mason jar with a lid I had no idea it was so he could catch a tarantula.

It turns out that a tarantula is not a bad pet to have. Quinn did some research and apparently the biggest danger to your pet tarantula is being handled by a human so thankfully they don't need to be picked up and loved. However, they are very docile and when they get scared, their first instinct is to run- not bite.

All they require is a 5 gallon tank, dirt, water, occasional bugs to eat, and a place to hide. They don't even poop. Which I take to mean that they don't stink.

I have to admit that I keep imagining all the scenarios which would result in him getting out and being loose in my house---aaaahhhh! I am also wondering about who's going to reach their hand in his cage to give him a bug or more water. I can assure you that it won't be me.

On a completely unrelated note: my kids have been taking lots of pictures lately and amongst the pictures of carpet, curtains, and about 20 pics of some lady's plumber-crack at a parade, one of them happened to take a pic of my preg belly so here it is:

Can't wait to meet our new baby boy!!!

expensive lunch date

2010-08-24T13:54:00.000-07:00

Today was doctor appts. Hooray.

Kidding. Wait, kidding about the hooray part, not the doc appt part.

Forrest had his 4 year old appt and Lola had a follow-up ear infection appt for an ear infection she had probably more than a month ago. That's how on top of things I am.

After the doc we met the hubs for lunch at Jimmy Johns. After we finished we were greeted by parking tickets on BOTH of our cars to the tune of $50 smackers apeice!! Apparently there were signs posted saying 'no jimmy johns parkers allowed' which I didn't see. Really, I didn't because I would have followed the rule.

Is it breaking the rule if you didn't see the sign?

For my revenge, I'm considering staging a stake out in that parking lot in order to find the secret spy who sits and watches for rule breakers in order to put tickets on their cars. I'm thinking I might just tell that secret spy how lame I think that is.

The end.

Forr is Four!

2010-08-18T08:45:00.000-07:00

What!!!! How the heck did that happen?

I remember waiting anxiously for your birth. You were a week late. In August. It was brutal.

I also remember waiting anxiously for your birth in the hospital. Pushing for 3 1/2 hours and your chubby little self just didn't want to come out.

Finally....you decided to make your entrance into my life. I remember you laying on my chest immediately after delivery, all purple and your poor little head was so bruised and deformed. I remember that moment exactly. "We did it," I whispered to you. I thought you were beautiful. I still do.

You think you're so rough and tough now. Such a big boy but you are still my little strawberry. My little strawberry who gives me a biiiiig hug and kiss first thing every morning. I love the way you talk to and kiss your new little brother (who is still in my tummy). I also love your impossibly big blue eyes.

I often think about what you will be like as a grown man. I pray that I do right by you and am the kind of mommy you deserve.

I love you so much. Happy Birthday.

Love,

Mommy

anything but that

2010-08-13T13:03:00.000-07:00

Just knowing that dr laura business was on there was making me way too embarassed. Here are some pictures from last fall that are a bit less embarassing.

Recent happenings that I blame on being pregnant

2010-08-12T16:15:00.001-07:00

1. I have to cross my legs whenever I sneeze or laugh really hard in order to avoid peeing my pants.

2. I cry during any country song I hear.

3. I play a little gameshow I made up every morning when I get dressed that I like to call, WILL...IT...FIT??!!

4. The smell of dino nuggets makes me want to vomit.

5. I cried when my hubs left for scout camp.

6. I eat a bowl of cereal every night before bed.

7. I can't fit both my rowdies on my lap at the same time when I read to them.

8. I feel a little guilty when I drink Diet Coke.

9. I think I am moaning and groaning too much when I get up because I heard Lola let out a total old-lady groan when she got up off the floor this morning.

10. I may or may not have called (and talked to) Dr. Laura. Yes, true and embarassing as it is, I did. Would you care to know how the phone call went? If so, read on.

Well, I called her after one particularly stressful morning because I thought I had abused my child. She told me that I was justified in what I had done, that I wasn't abusive, and that my only mistake was apologizing to my little...treasure. Incidentally she also told me that my child didn't see me as an authority figure and that was why he was doing what had caused the incident. She also told me some long story that I didn't hear a word of because I was on a cell phone and I didn't dare ask her to repeat herself. She also told me a joke she thought was really funny and laughed really loudly in my ear. Then she told me to splash some cold water on my face because I was bawling. I am such a weirdo, right?? My mother was highly offended that I didn't turn to her before Dr. Laura.

You can stop laughing at me now...

Family Camp 2010

2010-08-08T14:51:00.000-07:00

We went camping last week...

along with all of Quinn's brothers and sisters (except for Cade who lives out of state) so there was no shortage of kids. When I say 'no shortage of kids' I mean there were fourteen kids. Some of whom are growing into adults at an alarming rate. I had to double take when I saw Weston climb behind the wheel of his father's truck and drive to the lake. Wow. It made me feel really old.

We had an awesome time.

To say the kids had fun would be a gross understatement. The kids had so much fun. The played in the dirt, rode bikes, played in the dirt, threw rocks in the river, played in the dirt, waded in the stream, played in the dirt-- did I mention that they played in the dirt??

To sum it up: they went to bed every night after 10:00 pm filthy and full of sugar.

Here is my handsome hubby setting up our tent.

Throwing rocks into the lake is very serious business.

Forrest and Hayden: BFF's

Lola and Siera patiently awaiting their turn on Siera's big wheel

Uncle Jared playing Candyland with the rowdies

Ally and Lola

Even after 3 days without a shower (I did take a bath in the freezing stream-- does that count?) and 3 nights on an air mattresss in a tent I was really sad to go home.

But not sad to use a flushing toilet, take a shower, and sleep in my bed.

bodily functions

2010-07-28T20:28:00.000-07:00

This afternoon someone (I wouldn't want to mention any names cough*forrest*cough)peed inside one of my living room cabinets.

I'm still not sure why.

This evening, I had a "chocolate or poop" moment involving a brown blob in my entryway.

Unfortunately for me it was the latter.

At age seventeen, I truly had no idea how much my late twenties/early thirties would involve poop and pee.

Some Baby News

2010-07-25T13:40:00.000-07:00

Last Friday we had our ultrasound.

We marveled at modern medicine as we watched our newest family member wiggle around in utero on the screen.

Our baby's kidney function is great. Apparently they can tell this by the level of amniotic fluid present which I learned at this stage of pregnancy is actually just baby pee.

We got to see all four chambers of the heart pumping like gang-busters. According to the doctor they look great.

They were also able to tell us that our baby doesn't have a cleft palatte. Our baby has two arms and two legs and appears to be healthy in every way which I find miraculous considering everything involved in a developing fetus. My heart swells with love and I feel fiercely protective of this tiny being growing inside me.

Oh yeah, in case you're wondering...it's a boy!!!!!

My little Rock Starts

2010-07-08T13:28:00.001-07:00

Rock Start is Lola-speak for Rock Star.

I swore I would NEVER buy my kids awful, plastic guitars. It was just a little rule I had like never buying them tennis shoes with characters on them. I don't know why, I just don't like them (sorry if your kids are wearing them).

We were at the DI the other day (I love the DI- go ahead and ask me if my shirt itches...'cause it did when you had it). Whatever, I love the DI. Anyway I let the kids each take $5 of their own money to spend (note: that was too big of a sum...next time it will be $2). Guess what toy Forr picked up and got all Tom Petty with? A huge, hideous, purple, Kawasaki toy guitar. He was into it. Man, was he into it. He was holding it all cool and just completely rockin' out. I was disappointed to say the least but turned it over to see if it was below the $5 mark. "Awe shucks buddy. This costs $10 dollars. That's more than you have." I acted sad when I told him but I sure wasn't.

Well, as luck would have it, a very sweet DI employee overheard this exchange and went to see what she could do about that $10 price tag on that guitar (no no no nooooooo nooooooooooooo I tried to mentally connect with her but she wasn't havin' it). She came back and informed Forrest that the Kawasaki "Mega Chords" guitar was really only $2. Her incredible kindness didn't end there. She also found a Hannah Montana guitar for Lola which was also $2. Lola could care less though. She has maybe picked it up twice since we brought them home a few weeks ago.

The kicker- the volume on Forr's guitar is broken. It's not broken on the soft end either- it's turned up all the way, all the time. It does not make beautiful music. It's mind-numbing and headache-creating and pretty much drives me IN. SANE. But what do I do? I pretend I love it.

The silver lining: I get to listen to the songs he makes up while he plays it. I heard one about an ugly woman who only wore her underpants and she was mean because she didn't want any playdates.

Summer 2010

2010-07-01T13:24:00.000-07:00

So I feel so uncreative in my blogging technique lately. My brain has pretty much turned into oatmeal...not even hot fresh steel cut oats with butter and brown sugar...it's the stuff that gets left on the stove for hours and turns cold and globby. That's my brain. For example, yesterday I was getting so frustrated because the dryer wouldn't turn on. It took me a great while to discover that I was trying to turn it on with the door wide open...

Preg update: feeling great! Loving yogurt, fruit, and cereal. I think it's a boy but we will find out for sure in a few weeks.

Have you all been dying for another slideshow full of pictures of my children? Well, you're in luck!

To begin, did you all know that Lola is a princess? Well, she is. Thanks grandma and grampa for the outfit (SO ADORABLE!!) Notice that she is wearing her "ball shoes." They are called that not because she could wear them to a ball or something, just because of the balls on them.

Everytime I bake something, Forrest goes about the very serious business of washing all the dishes for me. As you can tell by his face, he takes the job very seriously.

These are all pictures of mommy's belly with a baby inside drawn by Forrest. Pretty good I'd say.

Mi familia. How I adore them...

Quinn was "moving the lawn" as Lola calls it and came around the corner to find these babies sharing a moment. So adorable.

Oh yeah. Here is our 2nd strawberry harvest. Crazy, right? Yep, crazy yummy.

Everyone have a great 4th!!

Losey turned 2!

2010-06-19T13:13:00.000-07:00

Happy birthday baby!

Since we had a pm wedding to attend (THANKS again Sara and Ryan for babysitting- you guys are the very best) we had Lola's happy birthday in the morning and had cake for breakfast :) It was delicious (although lopsided).

A snapshot of Lola at 2 years old:

-Lola is possibly the worst hider in the whole world. When she knows someone's coming to find her she giggles and squeals so loudly it totally gives her away.

-Lola wants to be just like her big brother. She repeats everything he says and does everything he does.

-Lola has the most beautiful eyes of anyone on the planet.

-Lola calls root beer "root beard."

-Lola is a hopeless bookworm.

-Forrest names every box elder bug he catches "Gilbert" and Lola calls them all "yogurt."

-Lola loves to laugh and have fun.

-Lola, your family loves you very much! Thanks for being you.

my day

2010-06-15T20:54:00.000-07:00

This morning I got rear-ended on the freeway (thankfully, nobody was hurt).

Then, I spent nearly the entire day having a "Jurassic Journey" at cub scout camp.

Afterwards, while trying to help a woman get her ENORMOUS vehicle out of a teeny tiny (I sure wish I knew how to make that word actually small) "parking space" (I put that in quotations because it wasn't a parking space at all. It was a gap between some trees) anyway, I was trying to guide her out of the space and she crashed her car into some trees. I felt really dumb and she was really mad.

When I told Quinn about it I started crying (I am blaming the pregnancy). He just laughed hysterically. When I got to my mom's house to pick up my kids I told her and my brother and sister-in-law and they all laughed hysterically too. I guess it was funny.

How was your day?

2010-06-11T15:34:00.000-07:00

Lately our life has consisted of:

some pretty awesome outfits,

tender moments (luckily there are rewards for the not-so-tender-moments),

a camping trip,

Oh yeah, and we have some news

It's faint but there's a plus sign there. Baby number three is scheduled to arrive December 4th. We couldn't be more excited.

Sorry about posting a picture of something I peed on :)

bloggity blog

2010-06-10T21:23:00.000-07:00

whatever. Have I really not updated since April 27??

I have approximately 5,000 pictures on my camera that I need to download and everytime I think about a blog post I feel really overwhelmed.

So I haven't downloaded any pictures (maybe tomorrow??) but I will share something I overheard while I was weeding this morning.

I hear Forrest making Lola hold the turn-the-sprinkler-on-thingy, do you know what I am talking about- that metal thing?? Anyway he is making her hold it and pretend it's a cane. I hear him tell her over and over that she gets to be the old woman and teaching her how to moan and groan while she is walking all wobbly with the cane. She was getting into it too- really playing the part. Then she came up to me and whispered into my ear that she was an old woman.

Where do they come up with this stuff?

like my new header?

2010-04-27T20:38:00.000-07:00

Me too.

Bryon, an awesome photographer who also happens to be one heckuva nice guy did our family pictures. He took so many adorable pics of my kids I had a really hard time selecting a few for the old blog.

I'm sure he would be happy to take your photo too. Maybe wait until this semester is over to contact him though since he is currently taking 99 credit hours and working full time.

Thanks Bryon. Did I mention that we love, love, love the pictures?

p.s. after we finished our little photo shoot I sat down in the car and noticed that the back of my leg felt really lumpy through my jeans. I then proceeded to pull out an entire pair of garment bottoms that had been wadded up in my jeans. Yep, I had been walking around all day like that getting my picture taken.

object lesson

2010-04-23T22:04:00.000-07:00

Today on my way home from picking up my kiddies from my mom's house, I decided to stop by Crown Burger for dinner. Quinn is at scout camp. I felt like a cheeseburger. I didn't feel like cooking one.

We ate. We hung out. We had fascinating conversations about upcoming grandma's birthday parties, super-heroes, primary activities, and cousin Morgan.

When it was time to head out I made the horrifying discovery that I had lost my keys. I was pretty sure they were in the locked car somewhere (which they were).

I was rescued by several people. Let's begin with the nice guy who gave me rubber gloves. Then there was the nicer lady who also donned rubber gloves and helped me dig through the garbage, next we come to the lady (whom I didn't know from Adam....er Eve) who lives in a nearby town and offered to give me a ride home (too bad I needed the carseats out of the locked car), then there was the gentleman who took special care to inspect my car very closely through the closed windows and crawled around on his hands and knees in the parking lot in case the keys had somehow ended up underneath the car. someone at the restaurant even gave my kids free ice cream cones while we waited.

The biggest heroes of the night were my folks. I tellya they come through for me every time. I am tearing up right now just thinking about them. They spontaneously and completely abandoned their Friday night plans for me. My dad drove an hour+ to get my extra keys while my mom stayed and hung out with me and my rowdies.

Oh, did I mention that I am teaching a lesson on service in Relief Society on Sunday? Hmm....

A three-year-old's idea of treasure is...

2010-04-14T13:26:00.001-07:00

Me: Good morning, Forrest! Did you have good dreams?

Forrest: I did. I had a dream about you mommy (points directly into my face).

Me: What happened in your dream?

Forrest: You and me and Daddy and Lola were hunting for a treasure.

Me: Did we find it?

Forrest: YES!

Me: What was the treasure?

Forrest: It was a box with a TELESCOPE and a SWORD (totally shouting)!

I'm Still Alive

2010-04-06T13:03:00.000-07:00

Well, in case you were wondering, I am still alive. Things just keep happening that I want to blog about and then I don't get around to it and then I just feel overwhelmed whenever I think about blogging.

Should I post about our little trip to the sleazy city of sin? Quinn had to go to Las Vegas for work and (after checking the weather forecast) I decided to tag along. Save for the sleaziness it was fun. I spent an entire day all.by.my.self. laying out by the pool. It was incredible. Thanks to Jen, Sara, and Mom for caring for my little preciouses while we were gone. I love you guys.

Should I blog about the tithing jars we made for fhe last night? So cute. Quinn's idea. Aint he something?

Should I blog about how I love Dave Ramsey? I was on my way to the bird refuge with the scouts last week when my car exploded and ended up costing $940 beans to repair. Thanks Dave Ramsey because without you we probably wouldn't have had the emergency fund sitting around waiting for something like this to happen so we could pay for that instead of new furniture.

Should I blog about how we had a fun Easter? Since it doubled as conference, we spent the day at Grams and Gramps.

Should I blog about how much I love my family? Well, I do.

Should I blog about how Forrest just told me, "I like ninjas. Ninjas are cool. I would like to meet some ninjas." He also told me this morning that he wanted to meet the lady from my workout video. Hmmm.

Should I blog about how Lola insists on changing her own diaper. Or about how she talked to and giggled with the snowman we made this morning? Since this is what we awoke to today:

I'm not kidding about how much she loved the snowman. She gave him a kiss goodbye when we had to go inside.

You now probably need to check into detox because you've had an Our Esprit overdose.

Have you read it yet?

2010-02-25T10:43:00.000-08:00

Twilight + Survivor + Ender's Game = The Hunger Games.

Thanks Michelle for lending it to me. My family, however, doesn't thank you because for the last few days Quinn has worn wrinkled shirts to work, there is a pile of dirty dishes in the sink and my kids ate lunch out of the Froot Loops box yesterday. It was that engaging.

I only got a few pages into the second book this morning because I need to clean my house. My book club people are coming over tonight and I can't let them see how I really live.

Thirty and Flirty and Thriving

2010-02-19T21:12:00.000-08:00

Today I am thirty years old. Please bear with me for some random reflections.

I have been on this earth for three decades and can say that I have never felt better. I guess being thirty means I can finally feel comfortable in my own skin.

I've got some wrinkles...the ones I notice most are the two vertical lines that form where my nose meets my eyebrows. Apparently I furrow my brow often. Matter of fact, I am doing it right now. Quinn sometimes smoothes my scowl-wrinkles out with his thumb when I am concentrating.

At this phase in my life I am wife, mother, and part-timer at the old trustee's office. I am busy. I remind myself often that I would rather be busy than bored.

I feel fulfilled in my roles and know that things are playing out exactly how they are supposed to be.

I love my family. My husband is pretty much the most incredible man on earth. This morning he:

1. made me french toast.
2. cleaned the house (even vacuumed!)
3. fixed the car
4. surprised me with a Kitchen-Aide (what the what!? I am so excited.)

Being a mother has introduced me to some new emotions. The love I feel for my children is intense to say the least and can sometimes only be described as ferocious (like when I screamed at the goose at Wheeler Farm for biting my child. I really scared some 5 year olds when I did that. I'm not really proud of that).

When I sit back and take stock of things I just feel really grateful for each and every breath. I feel full of love for the people around me. I feel excited and hopeful about the future.

Here's to thirty. and flirty. and thriving.

Top Ten Reasons Why I Love My Valentine

2010-02-14T05:49:00.000-08:00

10. Because he is so, so handsome. I thought he was hot when I met him eighteen years ago but every year he becomes better and better looking.

9. He is HILARIOUS. The guy cracks me up at least once a day. He makes me laugh so hard I get the hiccups.

8. My Quinn...let's say he has a bit of a rebelious side. I'm not gonna lie- I like it.

7. I also love the fact that Quinn loves to help people (the rebel with a heart of gold....every woman's fantasy. Okay, maybe just mine). Seriously, if you need help moving or laying sod or painting your house...he's always willing to lend a hand. Love that about him.

6. My babe is a good driver. And he likes to drive which is a good thing because I do not like to drive. A match made in heaven.

5. There are many things I love about Quinn that I can list here and a few that I cannot. I will just leave it at that.

4. I absolutely love those wrinkles that appear in the corners of his eyes when he smiles. I find them incredibly sexy. Especially when he is smiling at me or my children.

3. He's a manly man. He fixes cars, chops wood, does home repairs, and can put anything together.

2. Quinn is a fantastic husband and father. And he always puts his family first. He is a protector and provider.

And the number one reason why I love my valentine.....

He does a wicked impression of Punky Brewster's dad.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

Bag Lady

2010-01-24T13:08:00.000-08:00

These are some pictures I took a few months ago.

Am I the only one who sometimes feels

2010-01-17T12:30:00.000-08:00

as if I am just a kid masquerading as an adult? Even though I am married and have two children of my own.

That's how I felt today.

Let me set the scene:

Stake Conference. We're doing well for about an hour and then Lola starts acting crazy. It is blazing hot in there (I knew I wasn't the only one who felt that way when I looked over and saw that Quinn had removed his shoes) so I take Lola's sweater off. She thinks I am also going to take her dress off and completely hulks out when she discovers that her dress is staying on. I also notice that her cheeks are BRIGHT red. I decide she's reached the point where attempting to keep her subdued in our little area is not an option. I take her up the aisle and out into the hallway where she continues her freak-out and keeps tugging on her dress. I'm starting to wonder how long it's been since Lola has worn that dress and what size it is. I slide my finger down the front of her dress and it is tight. No wonder she is freaking out.

It's not long before I see Quinn and Forr. At this point, logic tells me that if the entire family is out in the hallway we might as well just go home (there was only 15 minutes left anyway). Lola screams all the way to the car and keeps screaming until we enter the freeway and Quinn turns the radio up really really loud because that has been known to quiet the savage Lola. She did stop screaming (either that or I just couldn't hear it over the radio) but the radio wouldn't turn back down. Quinn begins laughing maniacally. Then Forr starts disciplining Quinn for laughing at Lola and making her feel bad which just makes him laugh even harder.

I find myself thinking of my friend I ran into and chatted with out in the hallway at the meeting. Or countless others in my ward. Those women that always seem so confident and their kids are always so clean and well-behaved. And normal. Would any of them ever find themselves in a situation like this?

Honestly, who knows? And I guess I don't really care. We're crazies and maybe it is a result of how I was raised but I wouldn't feel comfortable being part of any family that wasn't a bit (or a lot) crazy??? Oh, and no offense to my family- I mean that as a sincere compliment.

Oh yeah, in case you were wondering, Lola's dress...6-9 months.

Lola is 19 months old.

the christmas post

2010-01-05T21:36:00.000-08:00

I have a bit of catching up to do so it's gonna be a long one. Bear with me here.

Firstly, we have had two new babies.

Meet Sadie Jane

and Kohen David.

Secondly, we had houseguests. We were so sad when they had to go home. Love you guys. The houseguests:

Lisal (with Chad aka Mr. Ed in the background)

Kevy-wevy

Nate and Lo's

I'm a Lumberjack and I'm OK. Quinn and Nate chopped some wood and made a fire.

Thirdly, there was a sledding trip involving lots of cousins

Afterwards they all came over for dinner. It was especially fun to see Cade and Courtney (in from the AZ)

Val and Merritt and Grandma

Jen and Ron

Grandpa and Lola

All of the kids are MIA in the pictures because they turned feral downstairs.

Then came Christmas morning:

Next was omelets at Grandma and Grandpa's

The omelet man, himself:

The blurry newlyweds

Jeff, Em, and Liam

My boys

Lola

Immediately following was lunch at the other Grandma and Grandpa's

Weston and Forr

Uncle Jared helping Lola and Taeya find Goldbug

Lola and Taeya

Sweet. Now I can cross "Christmas blog post" off my to-do list.

I love that man

2009-12-10T20:14:00.000-08:00

It had been a long day involving (amongst other things) an emergency trip to the pharmacy, shopping at eight different stores, hustle, bustle, and an unbelievably sweet and giving sister-in-law (Thanks Jen for watching my kids!!)

Yep. We were all pretty tired so it really was no surprise when Forrest had a meltdown while we were buckling him into the car (yes, it took several of us). As we drove away from my mom's house he started shouting, "I wanna stay at grandma's house alllllll niiiiiiight loooooong." It kinda reminded me of Lionel Ritchie. It also got really annoying. Lola joined in and there was weeping, wailing and I was gnashing my teeth.

I got an idea. Inspiration from the giant, air-filled Christmas decorations in somebody's front yard.

"THAT'S IT!" I said. "That's it! This is ridiculous. I am calling Santa." I grabbed my phone out of my purse and opened it.

SILENCE.

one-one-thousand two-one-thousand three-one-thousand.

"Mommy??"

"Yes, Forrest?"

"Do you think Santa knows I stopped screaming?

"Oh, you bet he knows."

I love Santa.

Something had to be done

2009-12-01T13:49:00.000-08:00

about Lola's mullet.

The Cherokee Plaza

2009-11-28T12:12:00.000-08:00

First things first. Regarding the matter of the furnace: Quinn came home from work on Wednesday and sprinkled handyman dust all over it so it works again.

Secondly: Thanksgiving. It was awesome. Lots of food and family.

Thirdly: we went up to The Cherokee Ranch yesterday. It was freaking awesome. Highlights, anyone?

Chels and Drew:

The chainsaw was busted out and then got busted.

My Forrey:

2 peas in a pod

big poppa in a hoodie

Justin's cute family (look at that belly...2 more weeks!!)

Mom got some pine boughs

shots were fired

Anybody know the number for the Wah-mbulance?

2009-11-25T10:39:00.000-08:00

I really, really, really hate to complain but...

Yesterday I got a migriane.

Last night I fell down the stairs (it's totally OK to laugh at that).

Now my furnace is blowing cold air and my lips are turning blue and I can barely type.

whatup universe?

A few reasons why Forr is the funniest

2009-11-22T10:54:00.000-08:00

1. The muffins I made this morning were, "dang yummy."

2. He told the brain-eating zombie (aka mommy) that he needed all of his brains back in order to keep his head big.

3. When he spilled his milk all over the table today he muttered "what the..." under his breath.

If the shoe doesn't fit...

2009-11-19T13:46:00.000-08:00

Like my new shoes?

They are the flats I have been looking for so when I saw them yesterday at TJ Maxx I figured that I had to buy them. They are perfect except for the fact that they are too small. Size 7. I wear a 7 1/2 but can get away with a 7 once in a while so I tried one on. I tried ONE on and it fit. You see, I had 2 kids with me and it was dinnertime and I was wearing fussy lace-up boots and was not about to take them both off. So the right shoe fit...pretty well. A little tight but it was OK.

When I got home I tried the left shoe on and that was a different story. Too small. Pretty uncomfortable actually. I really love the shoes so I devised a plan. My friend recently bought some boots that didn't want to zip up her calf so the shoe store stretched them for her. Now they fit. Hmmmm.....

I'll let you know if it works.

Girls' Night

2009-11-04T19:00:00.000-08:00

Dearest Lola,

We had our first girls’ night. You won’t remember it because you are only sixteen months old.

We got dressed up and went to a wedding reception then we came home and ate graham cracker/chocolate frosting sammys. You picked your purple-penguin fuzzy pajamas and giggled and squirmed while I put them on you.

Then we read a story about what snowmen do at night.

You gave Ashes a big kiss and hug goodnight.

I wrote this down because I didn’t want to forget how much fun we had tonight, just us girls.

Love,
Mommy

In the Entire History of Childhood

2009-10-28T10:19:00.000-07:00

…has there ever been a more spectacular toy than

a

great

big

box??

Halloween Part I

2009-10-25T19:54:00.000-07:00

Family Halloween party 2009. A fun time was had by all (well, at least by me). I really need to be better about taking more pictures but I managed to get someone to take one of Quinn and me:

Figure it out?

Quinn is the swine flu and I am the nurse giving him a vaccination. I love that pig nose on him. So did Lola. She couldn't keep her fingers out of the nostril holes.

The babies:

So very hard for me to get a decent picture of these two together. At least they are both looking at me in this one (even though you can't see Forr's eyes).

The downside of the night was the pinata candy. Peanuts and peanut butter everywhere. It was pretty horrifying. He was such a good boy about only eating the "safe" candy in his bag. Now if we can just get through trick-or-treating without having to bust out the epipen jr.

Weekend Update

2009-10-17T14:24:00.000-07:00

Quinn and I used Cade's timeshare in Park City this year to celebrate our 8th anniversary. We stayed the night last Saturday and had an awesome time.

Highlights included Quinn's feet completely coming out from underneath him on the slippery tiles in front of a hot tub full of people (including me who might have laughed a little) and me scraping up my face while swimming into the side of the pool (karma is a very mean lady).

I love you baby! Thanks for 8 freaking awesome years and I hope next year's celebration is less painful.

My parents split the week at the timeshare with us and they went up Tuesday night. We crashed their party last night so we all had a big sleepover in the suite. It was quite the party.

Forrest loved the Superman hat Grandma bought him and it was a real tearjerker when he lost it out of the window of the car on the freeway. Still not quite sure how that happened.

And, finally, we just got home from waiting in line for 1+ hours to get our kids vaccinated for the swine flu. We just really didn't want them growing little curly tails and hooves.

The end.

sick day

2009-10-14T11:23:00.001-07:00

I had to work today so Forrest and Lola were going to spend the day Grandma and Grandpa's house (I am now working 2 days per week and about 8 hours/week from home). As Forrest was getting out of the car at Quinn's parent's house he began to spew.

As it were, I didn't make it to the office today. Instead we went to Walmart for some Redbox cartoons and Ginger Ale.

On the way into Walmart, Forr spewed again. And again. Don't worry, I didn't turn around. Nope. I still went in for the Redbox's and Ginger Ale. Yeah, and the greeter was giving me some serious looks since she had a pretty good view of me holding my son's hand while he puked and making sure he bent over enough so as not to dribble on himself, giving him a comforting a hug and then just continuing on into the store. Banner parenting.

catching up

2009-10-09T21:19:00.001-07:00

Well. Lots has happened since the wedding.

Firstly, Forrest had a birthday. Happy birthday, you big three-year-old! Woah. Glad you enjoyed licking the frosting off of that frosting spreader.

I am also glad that your cousins were able to come up and play for your party and bring you some cool tools along with some super-cool goggles.

Oh yeah, we moved. Here are some pics from the new digs.

Just going to fill in some other highlights from summer '09.

Hike with Dad.

Lots of trips to the zoo (got to make that zoo pass worth the dough). I think this picture is pretty cute save for the gigantic gorilla nipple above Lola's head...

Here's 2 more gratuitous pictures of my children:

There you have it.

hello? hello? hello?

2009-10-08T14:23:00.001-07:00

I'm plugged in!! Yippee!!

More soon.

An Affair to Remember

2009-08-14T22:57:00.001-07:00

Think back and imagine the most beautiful bride you have ever seen.

Do you have a good mental image?

Chelsea looked prettier. Lots. She was amazing.

Here she is getting ready.

The happy couple

Daddy and Daughter

Mom and Daughter. Aren't they beautiful?

Sister power (keeps me safe from sin)

Nate and Forrest were pretending like they were falling down the stairs and sleeping or dead (I couldn't tell).

Lisa, who was responsible for the girls amazing bows and bracelets. Oh yeah, she also did all of the flowers. Lisa is incredible.

Future Daniel Craig??

Lola's BFF

2009-08-12T20:25:00.001-07:00

Moving out of Quinn's parents house is going to be rough on Lola. She is really going to miss her bff.

They love hanging out together in their Sunday best

They have important conversations

They share a chuckle now and again

Oh yeah, watch out for tarantulas and rattlesnakes.

2009-08-08T21:09:00.000-07:00

she said.

She is my new across-the-street-neighbor. She found 2 rattlesnakes in her window well. This week.

WHAT?!?

Too bad we already signed those millions of papers on Friday agreeing to live there and make the payment every month in sickness and in health, for richer and poorer.

Perhaps we will just put the house up for sale and stay where we are. Far away from highly venemous snakes and huge, hairy spiders.

24 of July Fireworks

2009-07-30T09:00:00.001-07:00

Chelsea (the soon to be Mrs. Chelsea) and Lo's watching the show:

Forrest felt very apprehensive about holding this.

Makenna stepped on a sparkler:

Lisal and Kevin:

Mom, Julie, and Happy Grant (in that order):

Dear Lola, will you please stop crawling away as fast as you can every chance you get?

Dear Forrest, I think those Arby's kids meal binoculars are facing the wrong way.

Gophers

2009-07-23T08:16:00.000-07:00

When these two head up into the backyard jangling their traps and discussing varmints, the vast underground village of gophers quake with fear.

They have caught well over 30 so far this year.

Sure, she looks all apple pie and banana bread but around these parts Grandma has a serious reputation as the woman who gets the (gopher) killin' done.

Random Acts of Weirdness

2009-07-12T19:36:00.000-07:00

One thing I love is hearing my broth Jeff tell mission stories (or any stories for that matter because he is hilarious).

He went to Oklahoma City, OK and he's got some doozies. One of my favorites is where he is out tracting the day after those Hail Bop Comet folks all committed suicide...remember that? You know with the shawls over their heads and stuff...weird cult thing. Anyway he is walking down the street with his companion right after this happened and someone drives by and sticks their head out the car window shouts, "go on, get that comet boys!!"

Another one I love is where he is walking down the street in the middle of summer and a car pulls over in front of them and he's thinking, "oh man, what now?" A woman's hand pokes out of the window holding 2 popsicles. I always thought to myself that I wanted to be that type of person. You know, someone who is always thinking of what they can do for others. Not even something huge just any small, simple thing.

So everytime I'm coming home from the grocery store in the summertime with popsicles in my car I'm always on the lookout for elders. The stars aligned the other day (maybe there was a comet flying by) because I saw some overheated elders riding their bikes down the street and I was in possession of strawberry creamies. I flipped my car around wildly and shouted at them to wait. I could tell by the looks on their faces that they thought I was completely nuts when I got out of my car and came jogging towards them. When I handed over the goods they seemed really grateful (I think they still thought I was a little nuts).

Confessions of a Closet Weirdo

2009-07-09T15:49:00.001-07:00

10. I have always wanted to be singing and dancing in those awful, cheesy shows at Lagoon.

9. I love talking in weird accents and voices and I am scared that I am warping my children by doing so in front of them because I can't help it.

8. I think it is hilarious when people have coughing fits. I am always stifling my laughter when people inhale something and can't stop coughing...weird, I know.

7. I love fake cheese (especially that "cheese" that squeezes out of a can).

6. I am afraid of riding bicycles. I am also afraid of skiing.

5. When I was a little kid I was really, really frightened of toilets. I would push the lever to flush and run out of the room because I always thought they would come flooding over.

4. I can't whistle. I just might be the crappiest whistler in the entire world.

3. I love to exercise. Sick, I know.

2. I play a dangerous game with the gas gauge in my car. I drive around on empty waaaaaay too long.

1. And, finally folks, the moment you have all been waiting for (if any of you are even still reading this) the number one confession of a closet weirdo: I love chewing on those little plastic thingies that attach tags to new clothes. There, I said it. Man, it feels good to get that off my chest.

If you are now totally freaked out at the thought of being my friend, I completely understand.

Oh yeah, by the way Quinn and I put an offer on a house and are scheduled to close August 10th....wha!!!!!!!

Hogle Zoo '09

2009-07-05T20:43:00.000-07:00

Independence Day equals the Loobies annual trek to the zoo.

Highlights, anyone??

Here is the tiger that someone (I wouldn't want to mention any names. Okay, maybe I will...MOM- you crazy lady!!) threw a berry she picked off a bush and threw it at this sleeping tiger. She hit the tiger right in his exposed underbelly causing him to twitch wildly in his sleep.

We tried to get a picture of some of the nieces and nephews together. All of the photos turned out about like this:

Here is a picture of cute Liam (he wasn't around during the photo fiasco):

And finally, here in the background of this photo you will see my cousin who, just by wheeling around in her rented Jazzy provoked the mountain lion so badly it jumped off the "rocks" in it's exhibit and pounced onto the chain-link enclosure trying to attack her.

Future Plumber??

2009-06-19T15:09:00.000-07:00

Forrest will turn three in a few months and is getting very independent. So, naturally he wants to go potty all by himself. First he tells me that he has to go and after I follow him into the bathroom and help him get situated he glowers at me and tells me that he wants me to leave the room. Fine with me. Independence is great. I am all for independence.

So the other day after we went through this routine, I made my retreat and closed the door and I started ironing or vacuuming or stuffing my face with bon bons. Eventually I realize that many minutes have passed since I left Forr in the bathroom and it was very quiet. Quiet sometimes scares me. I thought I'd better check it out.

I opened the door and nothing seemed amiss but I detected an odor in the air so I knew that some "business" had been done. The toilet was flushed and I noticed that there was water splashed all over the toilet.

"Forrest, why is there water all over the toilet?" I asked.

Forrest pointed to the plunger and said, "I got that and I put it in and I pumped it and I pumped it." Keep in mind that while he is telling me this he is doing the international sign for plunge the toilet.

Happy Birthday Baby

2009-06-18T21:36:00.000-07:00

Lola Loly Lo's Lolio Lolita

Has one year already passed since you made your sweet debut into our family?

I remember your birth vividly and the tender moments that followed. I marveled at your perfect, tiny features as I held you close and whispered to you.

Now it's nearly impossible to imagine life without you. Your fiery spirit and dimpled smile bring so much joy and entertainment to our family.

Love ya, sis!

XO,

mommy

Epic Journey

2009-06-12T13:24:00.000-07:00

Question: What crazy people would want to take three children under the age of three on a 1,200 mile (each way) road trip??

Answer: Me, my mom, my aunt, and my cousin.

A few weeks ago I spontaneously decided to join them on a trip to somewhere in middle America to attend, I guess I should say celebrate (since I didn't technically attend) my cousin, Ed's high school graduation. CONGRATS ED!!

We stayed with Rosie, my beautiful cousin who it turns out is a wonderful hostess. She made us feel so welcome, cooked us delicious food, left us goodie baskets in our rooms, and created a nut-free environment for my little Forr.

Here is the craziest part: the drive was freaking awesome. Between the four adults and the portable DVD player the kids were no problem. We girls had some serious late night (...er early morning) laugh-so-hard-you-have-tears-running-down-your-face-and-you-might-be-peeing fits. We also pigged out on junk, read lots of celebrity trash mags, and had some good conversation...pretty much a slumber party.

Some random tidbits:

My aunt pointed out to me that I had poop smeared on my chest at a gas station (chalk that one up to taking a road trip with a baby that has diarrhea).

I made the switch from regular to diet. Big step for me.

Favorite quote of the drive: "It's guts were still shiny." My cousin, Sara, describing some fresh roadkill.

On a side note: I couldn't post any pics because I left my camera in the Midwest.

2009-05-25T15:09:00.000-07:00

Memorial Day 2009.

I have been accused of being a compulsive planner so naturally, I had plans for us.

We were to have an early breakfast at Ruth's Diner and then take the kids to the Zoo. Sounded great until I remembered that Quinn would be spending all Memorial Day morning (not to mention all day Saturday and Sunday night prior)repairing and assembling flags for the Scout Fundraiser.

What is that adage about the best laid plans...nevermind.

We ended up sleeping late...ha!!! We slept until 6:00. Then Quinn hung around in the garage with flags and scouts while I got yelled at by Jillian Michaels and then took my babies to browse the yard sale next door.

Since we all had the day off together we decided we had to go somewhere and ended up at C-A-L Ranch where Quinn got himself a cowboy hat (he-llo). Hot Honky Tonk Hubby needed some sunglasses so our next stop was the mall. After we checked out the sunglass collection and ate lunch Quinn pulled us all into the photo booth in the food court. We giggled as we tried to get everyone's face in each picture then waited impatiently for the machine to dispense our prints. We waited....and waited....and waited. They never came.

I was heartbroken. I hadn't realized how much fun I actually had just bumming around with Quinn and the kids. I wanted those pictures so badly. I wanted them so I could remember how precious the day was that we spent together as a family. I get so caught up in everything that is going on sometimes I forget that these days are fleeting.

Life is funny, it's hard for me to enjoy the present and at the same time not be sad about it being so....temporary.

Here's to health, optimism, love, and trying to squeeze every last drop out of every minute we are blessed with on this earth.

Thelma and Louise?

2009-05-19T13:05:00.000-07:00

Nope. Just me and my mom ready to embark on an adventure.

Let's go through a few of the differences between Thelma and Louise's idea of an adventure and our idea of an adventure.

For starters, Mae and Mom didn't spend all night drinking, dancing, and then murder somebody.

Mae and Mom didn't meet or make whoopee with Brad Pitt only so he could rob us blind.

Incidentally, Thelma and Louise didn't sing along at the top of their lungs to the Julie Andrews- wannabe nursery rhymes CD.

I also don't remember Thelma and Louise cleaning carsick-kid puke off the carsick kid, carseat, and car.

I guess our adventures were a tad, well, maybe a lot more tame than Thelma and Louise's. We spent a few days at the Cherokee Ranch. Here are some highlights:

Loly (who spent pretty much the entire time shoveling rocks into her mouth).

Here is Daddy on the enormous tractor they rented to level out a spot for the trailer. He is a manly man.

Forr liked the tractor too.

What did Daddy find?

Aww, cute.

A picture of Forr after he was stripped of his pukey clothes.

Thelma and Louise's adventure ended with them holding hands while driving Thelma's 1966 Thunderbird convertable over a cliff.

Our adventure ended with us each riding home with our respective husbands, holding hands, and looking forward to another week.

Please don't grow up and hate me for this.

2009-05-05T20:32:00.001-07:00

It's just too funny not to share.

Quinn, please forgive me for posting these pictures. I know you think they are not funny.

But they are.

My cousin Sara (who was so quick with her camera)and I were upstairs at Dillards browsing the shoes trying to get the attention of a salesman (impossible because their service sucks).

We notice that Forrest is also browsing the shoes. A pair of lime green Jessica Simpson high heels call out to him and he proceeds to remove them from the display table. He sets them down on the floor, careful to keep them upright, and promptly squats down and starts unstrapping his sandals.

As you can see here, he had a bit of trouble getting them on:

But he eventually managed. Nice pose, little man.

And away he goes.

p.s. Forrest, I still think you are a manly little guy. Your love of tractors, guns, tools, and pumps just makes you well rounded.

Overheard

2009-04-28T13:53:00.000-07:00

I adore my in-laws. They are generous, kind, funny, thoughtful people. However, they do have one little quirk. They tend to...ahem..."save" things for a long time (in some cases, a very long time. Here, I am referring to the box of Luvs diapers in the basement from the 1970's.).

The other day I happened upon my 2 1/2 year old playing with a few of Quinn's old He-Men that his mother has "saved" since Quinn was a little tyke. Forr was playing with the one that was called, Enormous Golden Hand

and the blue one with the skeleton face, I think he was called Skeletor.

I hear him say, "you have nipples. Yep, and you have nipples. Let's FIGHT!" Then he started smacking them into each other. In case you can't tell from the pictures, Enormous Golden Hand and Skeletor do have nipples. And hairy speedos.

SOMEBODY'S GETTING MARRIED!

2009-04-22T19:13:00.000-07:00

You heard it here first, folks (unless you have already heard it somewhere else): My lil sis is gettin' hitched.

Aren't they a handsome couple?

This is huge. Huge. Chelsea's wedding is an event that I have looked forward to with curiosity and excitement for years. I have often wondered what type of a guy she would select to trek life's journey with. Not just anybody would be good enough for my only sister. Luckily she found Andrew (on public transportation, none the less).

I remember the first time we met him. Chad and Lisa were in town and we were all eating lunch at Hires. Cleo looked at him and asked, "what's he doing here?" Andrew totally took it in stride. He fits in perfectly with our family and the two of them could not be a cuter couple.

The big day is going to be in August. CanNOT wait.

Oh yeah, I really wish I would have taken a photo of Chelsea's gorgeous engagement ring on her lovely, slender finger. Her ring is so delicate and pretty and barely fits on my pinky finger.

Freeze Frame

2009-04-01T14:13:00.001-07:00

Right now...

Quinn:
1. Working for Questar.
2. Central Serous Corioretinopathy (weird eye thing he has got going on).
3. Scouts, scouts, scouts.
4. Guns, guns, guns.
5. Furiously saving money for a down payment on a home.

Mae:
1. Compulsively looking at homes for sale.
2. Trying very hard to furiously save money for a down payment on a home.
3. Sopping up urine in random places (potty training Forr).
4. Watching cute Liam a few days per week.
5. Working a few days per week.

Forrest:
1. Being such a good boy and going to the bathroom in the potty (most of the time).
2. Scowling and growling a lot at people.
3. Helps mommy with cleaning and cooking.
4. Luffubye (Love you, bye. He whispers this everytime he is finished talking to someone on the phone).
5. Loves to play "king's x" with Grandpa Evans.

Lola:
1. Pulling herself up on everything.
2. Crawling around at astonishing speeds and getting into everything.
3. Loves eating and taking baths.
4. Plays peekaboo.
5. Loves to clap and wave and play pat-a-cake.

Potty Training Sucks

2009-03-21T14:56:00.000-07:00

I have become a slave to my 2 1/2 year old's bathroom habits.

I live in terror of seeing him walk towards me with his feet 2 feet apart, trying to avoid touching the giant, dark circle of pee in the center of his pants.

I can't wait for the next time I get to try to take his poopy underpants off without globs of feces rolling out onto the floor.

There is nothing scarier for me right now than leaving the house with him.

On Thursday, after saving it up for three days Forrest finally pooped. In his pants. At my friend Summer's house.

On Friday, while eating his reward popsicle for pooping in the toilet, Forrest pooped his pants.

However, I strive to be a positive person so I am considering our potty training a success so far because the number of times he has peed in the toilet outnumbers the times he has gone in his pants.

By far the best advice I have gotten was from my dad:

"Whatever you do just don't start braggin' him up because then he will end up crapping his pants at the Arctic Circle."

St. Paddy's Parade

2009-03-17T10:50:00.000-07:00

Each year the weather determines how much fun we have at the St. Patrick's Day Parade. Last year it snowed and we left early because Forrest's lips started to turn blue. Luckily for us (and the bag-pipers) Saturday's weather was gorgeous!

Ma and Pa:

Cousin Eddie (I think he is tired of the "that there is an RV, Clark" joke).

Daddy and Lo:

Aunt Chels:

Cade and Hunter:

Little Liam:

Oh yeah, I took one picture of the parade. It appears to be some sort of a vehicle made out of a coffin?? Not quite sure why I took it.

Get me in touch with Margaret Rey

2009-03-07T09:39:00.000-08:00

Nevermind- I just wikipedia'd Margaret Rey to make sure I spelled her name correctly and it looks like she died in 1996. Sad. She was born in 1906 so that's a pretty good stretch.

Moving on.

Did y'all hear about that woman's pet chimp that attacked and tried to kill her friend? Quinn and I saw a special on television a little while back about people who didn't have kids so they decided to buy monkeys and treat them like kids. In time, the monkeys ended up attacking them.

It gave me an idea for a new Curious George episode.

The Man in the Yellow Hat better watch out.

This Weekend I...

2009-03-02T10:59:00.000-08:00

1. Went to dinner with Terri who is about to have her first baby ANY DAY NOW.

2. Cleaned up Forrest's puke. Twice.

4. Ate Red Velvet Cake that my friend Michelle made me for my birthday (sooo delicious).

3. Played Settlers of Catan with Chad and Lisa while our children ran around like feral animals.

5. Heard my brother give a beautiful blessing to his baby boy.

5. Also heard my brother discuss the miracle of babymaking while bearing his testimony in Sacrament Meeting. "I didn't mean that how it sounded." His exact words.

6. Took the young'ns to the Safe Kids Fair which was actually really fun and completely free.

6. Didn't take a single picture.